Fire in the Blood
by LemonStar
Summary: ..Daryl/Beth.. A continuation of the one-shot "You Found Me". Following the events of 5x04, "Slabtown". It still felt as if she wasn't there at all.
1. Chapter 1

**A multi-chapter continuation of the one-shot "You Found Me". Some expressed interest in me continuing that story. I hope you like it!**

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><p>…<p>

She walked near the back of the group, a bit of space between her and the rest of them, and though he usually walked up front with Rick, he found himself now lingering towards the back, too. He didn't want to make it obvious but he wasn't comfortable with the idea of her all the way back here, essentially by herself.

The rest of the group, they were quiet but they still talked and laughed with one another – just in soft, hushed tones – but she was quiet. No one else could probably even hear her but Daryl's ears were sharper than most and he had been the one to teach her how to be so quiet during their hunting lessons. A part of him was proud of her for being so silent but it was unsettling, too. He didn't like her being so quiet. That's not who she was.

He slowed his steps even more until he was walking beside her. She didn't even look at him.

She had been back with them for two days now and she had only said a handful of words to the others in that time. They had sat on the porch of the church the night before and she had said some things to him and only him but this morning, and hours later, she was silent.

Daryl wondered if he should say something, to start a conversation between them, but he never quite knew what to say, especially when the silence was crushing against his ears. He glanced at her from time to time but she stared straight ahead and her eyes never moved.

"Your ankle better?" He finally thought of something to say, his voice gruff.

She turned her head and finally looked at him. He almost wished she hadn't though. It wasn't the bruises or cuts on her face he couldn't stand to look at. The sight of those just pissed him off and if they hadn't killed the people at the hospital already, he would have wanted to go and torture them much slower this time.

It was her eyes that made him nearly flinch. They were big and blue as always. But these eyes looking back at him, they were empty. Void of anything. The warmth and the passion Beth had looked at everything in this shit-stained world with was now completely gone.

"It's fine," she answered with a slight nod. "They took care of it for me."

Daryl felt his fingers tighten around the strap of his bow across his shoulder. _They_.

"It was starting to feel better when we were at the funeral home but then, I hurt it again when I had to run out," she further said.

He didn't know what to say. In the weeks he had spent searching for her, he had tried his hardest not to think of that night. Of the walkers swarming and her shouting at him that she wouldn't leave him, at him yelling at her to run to the road and he would meet her there. For the weeks they were together, he hardly let her out of his sight. She being taken was all of his fault and no one would be able to tell him otherwise – not that anyone was rushing to assure him. He had made a blunder; a stupid mistake that anyone else would have avoided.

"You don't have to babysit me, Daryl," Beth said then quite abruptly.

His head jerked to look at her, his lips sinking down into a deep frown.

"I ain't," he said.

"You always walk with Rick," she pointed out to him. "You can go back up front."

"I don't mind walkin' with you," he said, his brow furrowed now, wondering why she seemed to be trying to get rid of him. Did she not want to be around him? Did she not feel safe with him around?

Safe. He almost snorted. What had he done to prove to her that he could keep her safe?

"I like walkin' with you. Got used to it. Missed it," he added.

And after that, he wouldn't look at her even as he felt her eyes on him. He wasn't sure why he had said that except for it was the truth. He wouldn't have said it if it wasn't. Daryl was never the sort to bullshit. He said what he thought and saw no point in holding any of it back. Especially now. Life was just too short. All of them had ticking clocks counting down over their heads and he wasn't going to feel like shit for liking to walk beside her.

Beth didn't say anything in response to his comment and he was grateful for that.

They walked in silence, a few feet between them and the rest of the group but they made no hurried movement to catch up. He wondered if any of the others noticed that Beth was keeping her distance from them. And if they had noticed, did they even care?

Daryl felt his fingers tighten once more around the bow strap.

It was a relief to him to have Beth back but it also felt strange in a way. Even with the group together – mostly together minus Maggie and Glenn – he and Beth seemed to fall right back into things they had adapted to while together. Just the two of them. He adjusted and shortened his long strides to meet hers. She lightened her steps so she was walking as quietly as him. He had taught her how to track and hunt. How to survive. And she had done just that and she was back now. Would she need anything else from him?

"Daryl," she said his name suddenly, quietly, and immediately, his crossbow was aimed and ready. He looked to her for a signal as to what she saw but she shook her head slightly and pointed off towards the trees.

A rooftop.

Daryl slowly lowered the bow and let out a sharp and short whistle.

Rick stopped and turned, causing the others to stop as well. He and Daryl looked at one another and Daryl jerked his head to the side and then pointed between him and Beth. If she was surprised to see that he was signaling that the two of them would scout ahead, she didn't show it and Daryl didn't feel like explaining himself. Besides Rick and Michonne, he trusted none of the others like he had grown to trust Beth. She would always have his back.

Rick nodded and held up his hand, signaling he would give them five minutes.

Daryl nodded as well and looked to Beth. She had already taken her hunting knife from the sheath on her hip. He held the bow to his shoulder, ready to aim and fire, and he slipped silently into the trees. Beth was just as silent but he knew that she was right there with him.

Through the trees, they came upon an old farmhouse – long abandoned.

Daryl climbed the steps first and pressed himself to one side of the door while Beth pressed herself to the other. They locked eyes and he nodded slightly. He knocked heavily on the door with his fist and her hand went to the doorknob. He watched her as she mouthed one, two, three. She pushed opened the door and Daryl entered swiftly, taking a quick look around the room. Empty. They moved together, checking the entire first floor.

She climbed the stairs first with Daryl behind her and as the wood creaked beneath their feet, they both held their breath as they continued their ascent. There was only one walker, shuffling and growling as it came out of the bedroom at the top of the stairs. Daryl readied himself to release the bolt but before his finger could release the trigger, Beth didn't hesitate. She raised the knife and sank it right into the walker's head. It slid to the floor with a thud and Beth yanked her knife out.

They finished checking the rest of the second floor and once they saw it was all clear, Daryl finally lowered the crossbow.

"Just like ol' times," he joked a little and for the first time all day, Beth smiled.

It was a sight for sore eyes and Daryl reacted with his own smile.

Beth looked around what had once been a bedroom. There was a dresser beside the window and Daryl watched as she went to it, opening a small jewelry box on the surface, covered in dust. It looked as if she was looking for something and Daryl couldn't help but watch with open curiosity though he didn't ask what she was doing. He finally realized when she pulled out several bracelets, the cheap beaded sort, and slipped them onto her wrist, covering that scar.

When she turned back around, she found him looking at her but she didn't seem embarrassed. "The hospital took mine away. Liked to use my scar against me. Told me I was weak," she told him and he didn't say anything, waiting if she would say more.

She only talked of the hospital and what had happened to her there in snippets. And the snippets were more than enough to always get his blood boiling. He didn't know if he would be able to handle it if she ever told him something longer than that.

"Told me I wasn't made for this world," Beth finished.

"They didn' know shit, girl," he said, his voice gruff again, thinly veiling his anger, and he knew she could hear it.

She nodded and looked down to the bracelets. For a passing minute, the only sounds either of them heard were a few birds chirping in the trees outside and the breeze blowing against the house and rustling the leaves. He looked at her closely and knew she wasn't believing his words. He tried to think of something else he could say to her.

Before he could though, Beth lifted her head to look at him.

"We should get the others. This will be a good place for the night," she said and he nodded in agreement, following her as she was already moving out of the room.

Leaving the house, they began to walk through the trees again, heading back towards the road, but Beth stopped before they could.

"I have to…" she looked past him towards some of the bushes behind him and he nodded.

"I'll keep watch," he said and once again, they fell into their routine.

Beth went into the bushes to go to the bathroom and Daryl stood at attention, his eyes on the lookout for any walkers, and he almost smiled as he heard Beth hum softly so he couldn't hear the sound of her relieving herself.

When she stepped out to him again, she gave him a small smile. "Thank you. You better be careful though. I saw some poison oak over there. Don't want you wiping with the wrong leaf if you go to the bathroom during the night."

Her smile grew a bit and Daryl smirked, shaking his head and nudging her with his elbow, as they began walking once more.

"Knew I shouldn' have told you that story," he grumbled and this time, Beth laughed.

When they got back to the road, Rick met them.

"Farmhouse," Daryl told him. "All clear and might not be a bad place to rest for the night."

Rick nodded in agreement. "We've been walkin' a long time today. Everyone could use the rest." He looked to Beth. "How are you doin'?"

Beth nodded automatically. "I'm fine," she replied and gave the smile that didn't reach her eyes. Daryl knew he was probably the only one who noticed.

Rick nodded again, his eyes going back to Daryl, and silently, he told him that he needed to talk to him later. Daryl nodded ever so slightly in agreement. "Think you could hunt us up somethin' for dinner?" Rick asked out loud.

"I'll see what I can find," Daryl agreed but then hesitated when he looked to Beth.

Beth looked at him but didn't say anything and Rick looked between the both of them.

He cleared his throat. "Beth, can you help with Judith? She's been a little fussy today."

Both Rick and Daryl were surprised when Beth shook her head.

"Tyreese seems to be…" she trailed off and Daryl and Rick were both looking at her. She shrugged her shoulders and looked down to the ground. "He's the one taking care of her now. I would just get in the way."

"It ain't like that, Beth," Daryl couldn't help but frown at her.

"It's okay, Daryl," she said and gave him that same fake-ass smile that made him pissed at the sight. What did she think she was doing, giving him that smile?

"What are we doing?" Michonne appeared at the trio. "I don't like just standing here."

"Daryl found a house," Rick answered.

Now, Daryl turned his frown on him. Daryl and _Beth_, he wanted to bite out, but before he could, Rick and Michonne had stepped away, talking about something in lowered voices. He turned his head back to Beth but she had also moved away. There were bushes along the side of the road and saw her plucking the berries from the branches.

It was another of their routines. He would go hunting while Beth got their camp together.

And yet, he felt reluctant to go. Even though she had the others now, Daryl didn't like the thought of leaving her where he couldn't see.

"What's the matter?" Michonne appeared at his side again and followed his eyes to Beth, an almost teasing smile on her face. "Don't trust us that we'll watch after her for you?"

Damn woman had read his mind because that was exactly what he had been thinking.

…

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><p>He had been able to kill a couple of raccoons and it wasn't enough to make the group feel full but food was food and they were all grateful for it. They also had a few cans of corn and with a roof over their heads and food on their plates, they were all happy that night.<p>

Daryl sat on the floor, his back against the front door, and Rick sat next to him. As he scooped corn up with his fingers, he couldn't help but watch Beth sitting across the room. She had done it subtly. She had placed herself near the rest of the group but there was still distance between them. She had put herself noticeably apart. Noticeable to him at least.

"How she doin'?" Rick asked his friend. Daryl shrugged and grunted in response. "I'm getting' worried," Rick then confessed and it made Daryl look at him. "She's not actin' like Beth normally acts."

Daryl shrugged at that. "She's been through somethin'. This is how she's dealin' with it."

Rick nodded with understanding and was quiet after that. Daryl went back to watching Beth as she nibbled on her piece of raccoon meat. He remembered when they had been together and he had caught a snake. She had been so sure that she would hate it but after Daryl tossed her a piece and she tried it, they both discovered that she actually loved it.

He suddenly had the urge to go back outside and try and track a snake down for her. Maybe if he skinned it and brought it back for her to see, she would smile again. A real Beth smile.

"She's hurt," Daryl then grunted.

"Bruises will heal," he said.

Daryl shook his head. "Not that kind of hurt. Hurt over Maggie and everyone else… not really caring that she was gone."

"We cared, Daryl," Rick said but Daryl looked at him sharply. "We cared," he said again. "We had other things, too, we were dealin' with."

Daryl shrugged but didn't say anything. He agreed with Rick – to an extent. For as terrible as that hospital had been, there was a small amount of relief that Daryl felt that Beth hadn't been locked in that boxcar with them at Terminus. And maybe Rick had cared but the rest of their group had sure as shit proved that they hadn't.

"What happened to you two out there?" Rick asked and it was the first time he had approached the subject.

He knew Daryl well – better than everyone except maybe Beth – and it was obvious to him that something had happened between the two of them when they had fled the prison together. But Daryl hadn't provided details then and he wasn't going to provide them now.

He didn't even really know what to say if he did feel like answering Rick's question. What had happened? Something. That was for sure. It was hard to spend weeks with just one other person and not get close to them. But it was more than that. It felt like it was.

He remembered the night in the funeral home – before the walkers came – and they had been sitting at the table, eating their dinner and Beth writing her thank-you note. Something had shifted between them in those moments but Daryl had no clue what it was and he hadn't been able to talk with Beth about it either. How would he even talk with her about it? He had never been the sort to ever talk with a female about anything.

"Beth," Carol turned and smiled at the younger woman. "Will you sing us something?"

Beth gave her own small smile and shook her head. "I'm sorry. I'm too tired and I probably shouldn't. Don't want to make too much noise."

Rick glanced over to Daryl before looking to Beth. "You sure, Beth? Just one song."

Beth looked to Daryl and Daryl stared at her, keeping his face blank, wondering what she would do. He expected her to refuse again and he was already feeling disappointment.

He had used to hate her singing all of the time. Causing too much noise and acting as if there was anything around them that deserved singing. But then, with just the two of them, he had gotten used to it and then sometime, he had begun almost looking forward to the next song she would decide to sing for him.

It had been too long since he had heard Beth Greene sing.

"I learned that this is one of Daryl's favorites," Beth then said softly and even before she began singing, he knew what song it was. Some of the others glanced to his direction but he kept looking at Beth.

"I was dancin' with my darlin' to the Tennessee Waltz/when an old friend I happened to see/I introduced her to my loved one and while they were dancin'/my friend stole my sweetheart from me."

Daryl rested his head against the door behind him and he watched her and listened to her sing. Her voice was soft yet strong and he almost felt like closing his eyes as if it would help him concentrate on it better.

When he was little, his mom had had this Patti Page record and would listen to this song over and over again. Daryl had always found it to be as sad as hell and his mom would almost always tear up as she sang along with it – bottle in one hand and cigarette in another – but when the first time he heard Beth sing it after they had set up camp one night, he hadn't felt the same sadness he had when he had been a boy hearing it. He watched her from the other side of the fire and listened to her sing and when she was finished, he felt himself giving her a small smile when she smiled at him.

When she finished, there were smiles from the others and compliments of how beautifully she sang and Beth smiled at them – that same smile that wasn't true or bright – and Daryl closed his eyes. She had survived the hospital and whatever they had done to her, he had gotten her back and she was where she should be, and he could listen to her sing again every night, and yet, none of it was right.

It still felt as if she wasn't there at all.

…

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><p>It was nearing dawn – the sky turning to a light grey hue – but Daryl was already awake, collecting his crossbow and gathering his other weapons. They had all slept on the floor in what used to be the house's living room and everyone else was still sleeping. They were beyond exhausted, walking miles before rest, and Rick had mentioned that maybe they would stick around here for a couple of days. Everyone had looked a little relieved at that.<p>

Movement from the corner of his eye caught his attention and he turned his head to see Beth was also awake, sitting up and stretching her arms. She turned her head to the door and their eyes locked. They didn't speak so they wouldn't wake the others. They both stood up and Daryl opened the door and stepped out onto the porch as Beth carefully stepped over the sleeping forms until she joined him outside.

"Mornin'," he greeted, his voice still scratchy from sleep.

"Morning," she said softly. "Off hunting?" She asked.

He nodded. "Yeah. You?"

"There was a stream just a little bit that way," she pointed to a direction further into the woods and he noticed for the first time she was holding a large rag folded in her arms. "I wanted to rinse myself off," she said.

He nodded again. "I'll walk with you."

She didn't offer protest as they began walking side by side. Just another routine. He hadn't realized how many of those they had developed together. They would go days – weeks for Daryl – without bathing but sometimes, they came across a river or stream and Beth would want to dive in. Daryl would turn his back as she stripped and immersed herself into the water and he stood watch.

This morning, it was the same. She placed the rag down on the bank where she could grab it easily and Daryl turned his back so he couldn't see as she began taking her clothes off. He could hear every movement she made and he tried not to imagine what her naked body looked like. He had thought of it a few times before but he had always felt like a dirty old man as soon as he did and was quick to rid himself of naked Beth Greene mental images.

He heard slight splashing and he dared a peek over his shoulder to see her in the water now, disappearing for just a moment as she dunked herself beneath the surface. When she popped up again, she kept the water to her shoulders. Figuring it was safe enough, he turned to face the stream. There was a rock nearby and he went to settle himself on it.

Beth smiled a true smile at him and he smiled a little in return. "You should do this, too."

"Tellin' me I smell?" He asked.

"Yes," she said bluntly and he smiled a little.

His crossbow was across his lap and it would look to anyone else that he was relaxed but both he and Beth knew better. He was always at attention; always ready for whatever might happen. Maybe even more so with Beth being there.

"How'd you sleep?" She asked, rubbing her hands over her arms and shoulders to get rid of the dirt and grime as best as she could.

He shrugged as his answer. "You?" He asked in return and it was her turn to shrug.

"I prefer sleeping outside now," she said.

Daryl nodded, understanding all too well. "Maybe, if we go on a run, we can find ourselves a couple a tents and leave everyone else to their four walls and roof."

The suggestion gave him the second true Beth Greene smile of the day. It was shaping up to be a pretty good day already. Now, he just had to hunt down a snake.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<br>**


	2. Chapter 2

**I cannot thank everyone enough who read and reviewed the first chapter. The response blew me away and it really got me motivated to work on and finish the second chapter already. Each chapter is going to alternate back and forth between Daryl and Beth's POV. Thank you and please enjoy!**

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Two.**

"Mint chocolate chip ice cream," Beth answered and Michonne nodded, practically licking her lips. "And Fritos that haven't gone completely stale and… blueberry muffins. Now you."

Michonne took a moment to think her own answer over as they walked through the woods. Daryl was on point, leading the way, crossbow over his shoulder, and Michonne and Beth walked behind him, playing a game they sometimes all played when they wanted to pass the time. What food did you miss the most before the turn?

After a breakfast that morning of rabbit and canned peas, it was decided that they needed to seek food and supplies; to see if there was any place near. Rick had suggested to Daryl and Michonne that they go, both readily agreeing, and Daryl had then suggested to Rick that Beth come, too. A part of her had been surprised but a much larger part hadn't been at all. Ever since they found one another again, Beth noticed that Daryl seemed to not want her out of his sight for too long. She understood because she felt the same, too.

The whole time she was in that hospital, Daryl was never from her mind. With everything she did, she would ask herself what Daryl would do or how he would get out of this or how he would survive all of this? She heard his voice constantly in her head, telling her things, offering advice, sometimes barking orders at her, and she wouldn't tell him – she knew he wouldn't believe her – but he was one of the reasons why she had gotten out of there.

And when she found him, when he found her, she had nearly buckled with relief. After all of this time, he was right in front of her again and she didn't know what she would do if they were suddenly pulled apart again. She had gotten so used to having him close. More than one person in their camp noticed how they were together now. They moved as partners; well-oiled and well-trained and well-practiced. It was as if they could anticipate one another's moves before they were made. She hadn't even realized how in sync they had gotten but after spending so much time together – just the two of them – she supposed that it was only natural for it to happen.

He was all she had. She was with the others, yes, but she knew they hadn't put much stock in her. Even her own sister hadn't stuck around, writing her off as dead before leaving with her husband. Beth didn't know if she would ever see Maggie again and at this moment, she didn't know if she even really wanted to.

Daryl had never stopped believing that she was alive and he had never stopped looking for her, knowing without a doubt that he would find her. She didn't think there were words she could ever say to him that could possibly thank him enough.

"Chocolate milk," Michonne began.

"Oh, yes," Beth nodded enthusiastically.

"Cheese and…" she paused a moment, taking another moment to think. "Cheese," Michonne said and Beth laughed softly.

At the sound, Daryl looked over his shoulder back at both them. Beth gave him a small smile and one corner of his mouth twitched upwards before he faced forward again.

She wasn't sure how long they had been walking but they hadn't passed anything. The woods weren't getting thinner to signal to them that they were approaching something and she began to wonder if they should just turn around and head back towards the farmhouse.

It was peaceful the further they walked into the woods. Just birds chirping, leaves rustling in the slight breeze and the faint chatter of a squirrel in a tree. It was almost easy to forget that the world had ended but then a walker shuffled towards them through the brush and Daryl didn't hesitate in firing a bolt from his crossbow into its head.

"What about you, Daryl?" Michonne asked as Daryl went to rip the bolt from the walker's head and load his crossbow again. "What food do you miss?"

Daryl shrugged and didn't answer.

"Sometimes, Daryl really misses the hard-shelled tacos from Taco Bell," Beth answered for him and Michonne looked at her with a raised eyebrow, the question silent but obvious. Beth shrugged slightly and looked to the ground as they walked. "Just something he told me once," she said.

It had been during their weeks together. She had discovered that when Daryl was starving, he got snappy. He was usually short with people but the hunger brought a different type of short fuse and she had learned how to differentiate them all. After he came back from a quick hunt with one paltry squirrel to share between them, he had chewed on the meat and let it slip that he sometimes imagined the tacos from Taco Bell and he swore he could still taste them. Beth had smiled at him as if that was the greatest thing she had ever heard. She had found that she loved learning new things about Daryl Dixon.

"Beth," Daryl said her name and she snapped her head up to look at him. He didn't say anything but he jerked his head towards a tree.

She nodded and stopped walking, Michonne following her lead.

"What's up?" Michonne asked.

"Bathroom break," Beth said. "Are you good?"

Michonne was looking at her closely; curiously. She nodded. "I'm good." She paused and let her eyes linger on the bruises and cuts marring Beth's face. Beth could feel her eyes practically burn her. "How is that?" She asked, her voice soft.

Beth nodded and out of habit already, her fingertips lifted to the scar on her left cheek. "It could always be worse. I could be dead."

Michonne nodded and was silent after that. Beth was grateful. She didn't want to talk about it and she was glad that Michonne was the sort who never talked or questioned or pressed unless the other person was willing.

She didn't want to talk about the hospital. She had let some things slip to Daryl but to no one else and she wanted to keep it that way. It was hard enough just mentioning brief things to Daryl. She wouldn't dare tell him everything. The beatings, the lollipops, the hands sliding up under her shirt that made her want to vomit. She would never tell him that sometimes, when one of the guards had been touching her, she had imagined it was Daryl instead. She didn't know why she had done that.

Daryl stepped from the trees, his crossbow slung over his shoulder. "There's a house comin' up," he said, speaking to both of them but Beth saw that he was only looking at her.

She nodded in response and he turned, disappearing in the foliage again, Michonne following behind and Beth bringing up the rear. Daryl and Beth were both silent but occasionally, Michonne's feet would snap a branch or kick at the leaves on the ground.

There was a building – another house – looming ahead and Daryl stopped, turning to look at Beth, who nodded to his silent order. She moved ahead first and went onto the porch. Just as they had done to the first farmhouse, Daryl knocked loudly and Beth opened the door so Daryl could rush in with his crossbow. Michonne was next, her katana drawn at the ready. Between the three of them, they were able to clear the house of the two lingering walkers within minutes.

As Michonne stayed upstairs to go through the drawers and closets, trying to find warmer clothes and blankets to take back, Beth and Daryl returned downstairs, going into the kitchen. They searched the cabinets finding more canned foods – fruits and vegetables – and a couple jars of expired peanut butter.

"Any pig's feet?" Daryl asked and Beth felt a small smile creep across her lips. When she finished loading her pack, she lifted her eyes and found him looking at her. "You okay?"

She nodded. "Don't I seem okay?"

He didn't answer and she watched him closely. His eyes didn't stay on her though and he turned away from her to resume opening the rest of the cabinets.

"Daryl," she said his name in a soft voice and before she could stop herself, she reached a hand out to touch his arm. He instantly stopped and turned his head to look at her. "You've been through a lot, too," she then reminded him. "Are you okay?"

He nodded just as she knew he would. "Don't I seem okay?" He threw her answer back.

"No," she answered truthfully. "You seem really tired."

He didn't say anything to that and he kept his eyes fixed on her. She was fairly certain she felt herself stop breathing when she watched as Daryl lifted his hand. He brought it to her face and his thumb gently swiped across the scar on her cheek. It was the second time he had done that, the second time he had touched it with gentle care as if he didn't want to bring her any more pain, the second time he initiated contact between them.

And Beth suddenly felt warmth spread everywhere throughout her body.

"You okay with Michonne being here?" He asked her and it wasn't the question she had been expecting.

His hand slowly slipped from her cheek as she nodded her head. "Yeah," she answered truthfully. "Michonne's loyal to Rick and Carl. I know that. I was never expecting her to care one way or another about me… she's not family like some of the others."

Daryl sighed softly. "I don't like how you pullin' yourself away," he then admitted.

She knew what he meant and she knew that that was exactly what she was doing. And she wasn't surprised that out of everyone, he was the one who noticed. Daryl always noticed everything. It was the tracker inside of him.

"I'm right here," she told him softly and she took a small step towards him.

Daryl set his eyes on her and she didn't move her eyes from his as she reached out and slid her hand into his like she had done that day in the cemetery and once again, he let her without pulling away or stiffening at her touch.

She took a deep breath. "I thought about everyone when I was in that place but… I spent my time thinking about you more than anyone," she told him, still in her soft voice, and Daryl stared at her.

She didn't expect a response. She knew he wouldn't know what to say to that. She didn't know why she had said that to him. People didn't say things like that to Daryl Dixon.

Daryl stared at her and said nothing and she didn't know what else to say.

They both heard the stairs creak as Michonne came back down and Daryl stepped away, pulling his hand from her. Michonne entered the kitchen, her arms full of blankets and a few bits of clothing.

"Ready?" She asked.

Daryl glanced to Beth and then nodded, looking back to Michonne. "Yeah. Just a couple more closets we still need to check."

He moved from the kitchen and Michonne came to Beth, helping her shove the blankets and clothes into her pack with the food. They all heard a rustling outside and when Beth lifted her head to look, Daryl was already moving outside, crossbow at his shoulder, and Michonne followed. Beth closed the pack and slung the now heavy bundle onto her back. She took the hunting knife from the sheath and made her way outside, too. There were three walkers on the ground, easily dispatched by Daryl and Michonne and by the time Beth joined them, it was done and there were no more.

Daryl looked at her, the question silent on his face, and Beth nodded her head once.

This time, as they began making their way back, Michonne was point and Daryl and Beth walked behind, side by side. He didn't say anything and she was grateful for the silence. She felt as if she had reached her talking quota of the day and didn't feel like doing it any longer. Of everyone, Daryl would understand the need for silence more than anyone.

She supposed she could talk to him about what was going on between them because something most definitely was happening between them. It had shifted that night as they sat on the front porch with jars of moonshine. He had talked to her without her prompting him to and had told her things she was certain he had never told another person. And as he opened up to her, she opened up to him and for the first time, she felt as if she had a friend in this world. Ever since the prison had fallen and she and Daryl had escaped together, she had sat there with him and had felt as if she wasn't completely alone.

And then, in the funeral home, something had happened. She couldn't be sure what but he started looking at her in a different way and she felt herself beginning to do the same. But then, she was dragged away from him and sometimes, at night in her hospital bed, she looked out the window and cried silently to herself because so much had been ripped away from her already and she didn't know if she would ever see him again.

But she was here. She had found her way back to him and now, that something in the funeral home was still here but still not being talked about. Maybe she was imagining it. Maybe she was very much an eighteen-year-old girl who had a crush on her companion and it was nothing more than that. Maybe he hadn't been looking at her any differently and deep down, she had just hoped he had been.

When they arrived at the farmhouse, Beth went inside to rid herself of the food and blankets and she watched as Daryl and Rick stayed outside to talk with one another, probably making plans for what they would do next. She knew going to Washington D.C. was an option but it was one she hoped they wouldn't take. She knew her sister and Glenn had gone off with the man who swore he knew the cure to all of this and though she hadn't met him or those with him, Beth knew she very much doubted him.

"You've brought us a feast," Carol smiled at her, slipping an arm around her shoulders.

Beth did her best to smile. "I've never been so happy to see a box of rice before."

"We'll get some water and make it over a fire tonight," Carol promised her and Beth felt the smile come a little easier now though she knew it was still small. Not her usual smile. "He was such a wreck when you were gone," Carol then said in a soft, low voice. Beth felt her smile slip from her face. "He tried to act like he was fine but he wasn't. I knew he wasn't."

Beth wasn't sure what to say. She knew Daryl had looked and searched for her as hard as he could and yet, she hadn't imagined what he would have been like while doing so.

"Well, I'm back now," she finally spoke and Carol smiled again, squeezing her arm.

"Yes, you are. And Daryl can go back to being Daryl," she said with some sense of finality as if the decision was made and that was that.

Carol left then and Beth looked around at everyone going through the clothes and food and dividing the blankets between them. They were talking and the occasional laughter escaped but Beth suddenly felt as if she could no longer breathe while in that room with them. There was a back door in the kitchen and she slipped through it, stepping outside at the back of the house. She took a big gulp of air and then another. These sometimes hit her. These attacks. Ever since she had gotten out of the hospital, she sometimes felt like there were moments where she couldn't breathe and she would have to gasp over and over again to get her lungs working once more. She sometimes felt too warm and too boxed in and she had to get out. She sometimes felt like she just had to get away.

She pulled her knife from her hip and held it as she went into the trees. Her ears were perked for any type a noise – animal or walker – but she couldn't hear anything except birds and Carol's voice inside of her own head. _I knew he wasn't_. Beth had never asked Daryl about Carol. It was none of her business though it was obvious to everyone how close those two were. Daryl had almost killed himself looking for Carol's daughter and after that, they had a bond between them that seemed unbreakable. Beth had been curious but she had never asked; as if she knew that Daryl wouldn't answer even if she had. Were they friends or something more?

She sighed heavily, angry with herself. It was the end of the world. The apocalpyse. And she was getting jealous for no reason whatsoever. She didn't have time for this. None of them did. What did it even matter? _Daryl can go back to being Daryl_. She repeated Carol's words to herself. Now, that she was back, the group could return to how it was supposed to be and that meant Daryl being Rick's right hand man. His henchman. Not her babysitter. She didn't need him to look after her. She had looked after herself before and had done just fine.

She heard a rustling behind her that wasn't from the wind and she instantly turned, her knife raised but it was only Daryl. She slowly lowered her knife and looked at him. She wanted to ask him what he was doing; why he was out here; why he had followed her but she didn't speak and instead, she turned again, putting her back to him. She wanted to tell him to go away but the words caught in her throat and she couldn't bring herself to give them voice. She wanted to be alone and yet, he was the only one she wanted near her.

She began walking again and she felt Daryl behind her.

_He was such a wreck when you were gone_.

Beth tried to imagine what that had been like. She had hugged him as he had broken down – finally – outside of that moonshine shack but that had been in anger at himself and sadness at the loss of everyone else. What was Daryl Dixon like when he was a wreck? And what did that mean if he was wreck just because she was gone?

She sighed again. She really had to stop. It didn't matter and she didn't care. None of it mattered. She wasn't in high school anymore, giggling with her friends because one of the cute boys in their class smiled at her. That world was dead and gone and there was only this one now. There was no room for anything besides trying to survive it.

There were some low branches and she bent down to walk beneath them but she stood up too soon and strands of her hair got caught.

"Dang it," she muttered under her breath as she tried to free the tangles. Daryl came up, his lips twitching as if he wanted to smile, and he helped her get her hair from the branches. "Thank you," she said softly, looking at him, and he nodded without saying anything. She sheathed the knife and then made quick work, taking her ponytail down and fixing it, tying it back again. "What are you doing out here?" She then finally was able to ask him.

He shrugged. "You're here," he said simply. "And you're helpin' me track dinner."

Beth didn't know what to say after that so she didn't say anything. She turned her head away and Daryl stepped past her to continue hunting an animal or two for them to eat. She was the one to follow him now, keeping her steps silent, and she pulled her knife again.

Being out here in the woods like this with him, just the two of them, she could easily imagine that they were back to where they were, weeks ago, when it truly was just the two of them. She wanted it to be the two of them again. Just the two of them again. When it had been, she had wanted to find the others so desperately. She had assumed that wherever the others were, they were trying to find her and Daryl, too. At least she knew now that they would have looked for Daryl. Never her. They all knew that the only reason she had lived past the prison was because of Daryl. She knew it, too. She supposed they were happy she wasn't dead but it was the kind of happiness they would feel if anyone they knew turned up alive and not dead. Wasn't much more than just a typical human reaction.

Within the group, she didn't matter much. She never had. She was Hershel's daughter and Maggie's sister and Judith's caretaker but nothing really more than that. And now, she was even less. Her dad was dead, her sister was gone and Judith had someone else taking care of her. She knew she could slip away into the woods and leave and the only one who would really notice her absence – and care about it – would be Daryl.

She was so deep in thought that when Daryl released his bolt, she jumped, startled. She watched as the arrow pierced the side a rabbit, the animal falling to the ground. He went to go collect both the rabbit and his bolt and when he returned, she took the animal from him.

"Where you at? You're distracted," he noted.

She nodded, not denying it.

"If you wanna talk…" he trailed off, the words hanging and then dying in the air, and he looked almost confused, as if he couldn't quite believe that he had just offered that.

And Beth wanted to smile because she couldn't quite believe it either.

She shook her head. "I'm fine."

Daryl stared at her then, his eyes hard as always, and she knew he was seeing right through the bullshit but she didn't care if he knew or not. Was she fine? No. But did she want to talk about it? No. She was never going to talk about it. It would do no good besides making her relive through it all while she just wanted to leave it behind.

"I got the biggest blanket Michonne found," he changed the subject. "No tent but was thinkin' we could set that up and sleep outside tonight. If you still wanna."

"I want," she found herself eagerly nodding her head. "Just the two of us?" She then asked before she could stop herself.

Daryl stared at her and she saw his eyes soften. Just barely but it happened and she wondered if anyone else besides her would be able to notice.

"Yeah," he nodded, speaking softly. "Just us."

Beth exhaled a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

She felt like she could breathe again.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<br>**


	3. Chapter 3

**You guys are blowing me away with the reviews and I am so thankful for every single one I get. I'm so happy you are enjoying this story and you're really making me just want to write and write. Thank you!**

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Three.**

As Beth dug a small hole in the dirt for their fire like he had showed her once, Daryl took the tin cans left over from dinner and poking holes in them with his knife, he strung the "alarms" up around the spot where they would be sleeping that night. Rick was watching from the front steps of the house but Daryl didn't look at him. He knew Rick didn't approve of them doing this but there was nothing the man could do to stop it.

Once she had the fire going, Beth took the blanket Michonne had gotten from the other house and the one Daryl had claimed for them and shook it out, laying it on the ground next to the fire. She then took the blanket she had used the night before, shaking that one out as well so they could have that covering them for the night as they slept. Daryl watched everything she did from the corner of his eye. Not that he didn't trust her to know what she was doing. She had set up their camp every day for the months they were together.

But rather, he watched her just to watch her.

"Still think this is too risky," Rick spoke up as Daryl finished stringing up the cans.

"Don't feel like sleepin' inside," Daryl told him with a shrug. "Ain't the first time any of us have slept outside 'fore."

"Not when there's a perfectly fine shelter for us to bunker into," Rick pointed out to him.

Daryl didn't respond and looked back to Beth for a moment before back to Rick. "Not tonight," he said with a shake of his head.

Rick looked like he still wanted to protest but he glanced at Beth over Daryl's shoulder, now sitting on the blanket, her legs drawn to her chest, her cheek resting on her knee and her eyes staring blankly into the fire.

Daryl turned his head and looked, too, and he felt his throat grow dry as cotton as he watched her. Not many things in life scared him. It was hard to get scared about things when people who died didn't stay dead. Put fear a bit more into prospective.

But he looked at Beth now and he felt scared because he had no idea what to do for her and he knew he was the one who had to figure it out because no one else was going to be doing anything to help her. He had been scared for people before. Merle, his family here. But that was when their lives had been in danger. Whatever had happened to Beth in that hospital, it had done something to her and Daryl didn't know if it was something that even could be fixed. This was something completely beyond him.

Rick and Daryl looked at one another again and after a moment, Rick nodded his head, still looking reluctant but at least Daryl could see understanding in the other man's eyes.

As Rick turned to go into the house, Daryl went to the blanket, sitting down beside Beth. He sat close but he made sure he wasn't too close. None of his body was touching hers. She was so far away right now, he didn't want to scare her.

His crossbow rested at his feet and he reached into the pocket of his jacket, pulling out a crumpled pack of cigarettes he had found on a walker a couple of days earlier. He popped it in his mouth and then leaned towards the fire, putting himself closer to the flames and lighting the end of it. He sat back up and Beth turned her head, resting her opposite cheek on her knee so she was looking at him.

She didn't say anything so he didn't say anything, either. He turned his head away to exhale the cloud of smoke away from her and then turned back towards her.

"What are the others going to say?" She then asked, breaking into the silence.

"'bout what?"

"About us sleeping outside like this," she said.

He shrugged, the cigarette balanced on his lower lip, and acted like he hadn't been thinking about that, too. "Not our problem that they're idiots and want to be squeezed like sardines in there."

"You don't have to babysit me, Daryl," she then told him for the second time and he frowned much like he had the first time she said those words to him.

"I ain't babysittin' no one. Don't flatter yourself," he frowned at her. "I just don't like sleepin' inside all the time."

She nodded at that. "I know. When we were all still at the prison, you would sometimes go outside to sleep on one of the tower decks."

Daryl couldn't help but be a little surprised at that. "How'd you know that?"

"I know a lot about our family. No one really pays that much attention to me so it's easy to just be there and observe and learn," she explained.

He looked at her, not saying anything to that because they both knew what he was thinking. He had never paid attention to her either. In the prison, she was a part of his group; another person he had to look after and keep safe but he hadn't thought on her much. She was just Beth. She was Hershel's daughter and Maggie's sister and she was Lil' Asskicker's main caregiver. He knew she was the weakest amongst them and that's all he knew.

It was only after they escaped the prison did he learn anything about her.

There were things he wanted to tell her. He wanted to tell her that he had gotten used to sleeping outside with her and that last night, even in a room with their family and knowing she was in there, too, he hadn't been able to sleep well since he wasn't that near to her. They had been out here together, for weeks on end, just the two of them, and he had gotten used to her breathing and the small whimpers she made in her sleep as she dreamt and the way she didn't move that much while she slept, usually curled on her side and staying that way for the duration of the night. He wanted to tell her that when she was gone and he had no idea where she was, he slept like shit and only a couple of hours at a time.

He didn't say any of this though. He didn't have a place to. It would be too weird of a thing if he said he couldn't sleep if she wasn't close enough to him and he didn't much like that thought anyway. When had he gotten so attached to her? And what would she think if he told her? He wasn't anyone – not someone she would want missing her.

"Good night, Daryl," Beth then said softly.

He grunted in reply and took another drag of the cigarette and watched as she slipped beneath the blanket and rolled onto her side, facing the fire, putting her back to him. He moved the crossbow next to him and laid down, too, on his back, bending his arm behind his head and his eyes fixed up on the stars.

The night was quiet. A few crickets chirping and somewhere in the distance, he heard a coyoto letting out a lone howl and their small fire cracked and snapped at the wood. And he heard Beth's soft breathing beside him. He listened to it, able to detect when it dropped off and she fell completely asleep. She was next to him, sleeping and safe, and he told himself this, seeing her with his own eyes, and slowly, he was able to relax a little bit.

He didn't know what to do for her. She needed something – that much was obvious. But all he could think to do was get her a snake because she liked eating them. He still had to do that but after that, he had no idea. What could a guy like him do for her anyway? He had proved to them both that he couldn't even keep her safe. It was kind of amazing to him that she wanted to be anywhere near him after he had let her get taken like that.

He flicked the finished cigarette away and then turned his head towards her, looking at the back of her head as she slept. He watched her body slowly rise and fall with each breath she took and he felt his eyes grow heavy. The last thing he saw before he fell asleep was the small freckle on the back of her neck, near the top of her spine.

When he woke again, it was dawn. His eyes snapped open and it took less than a second for his brain to wake up completely and realize that he was alone. Beth was gone.

The fire had died and the morning and the blanket she had slept beneath had been pushed away. He hurried to his feet, grabbing his crossbow. He rapidly looked around but he didn't see her anywhere. He looked back to the house, thinking she had gone inside, but he quickly shook that off. She wouldn't have gone inside. There was no reason for her to.

How hadn't he heard her get up and leave?

"Beth!" He called out her name without thinking. He didn't give a shit about walkers right now. "Beth!" He nearly tripped over the cans as he stepped over them. He felt his heart pound in his chest as his eyes searched frantically.

How the hell had he slept through her getting up? And where the hell was she?

"Daryl!" She hissed quietly, suddenly, from behind him. He spun around and saw her emerge from the bushes, her fingers leaving the button of her jeans. "What is it?" She asked. "You know you shouldn't shout like that."

He looked at her and then closed the distance between them with just a couple of strides. With the crossbow in one, he reached out with his other arm and without thinking about it, he put it around her neck, pulling her in and crushing her to his chest. He felt her slowly lift her arms in response, sliding them around his waist, and her hands resting on the back of his vest, over the wings.

"You know I have to go to the bathroom as soon as I wake up," she said into his neck.

He didn't say anything and it took him a moment for his heart to return to a regular beat.

He wasn't sure how long he kept her to him but then, slowly, when he felt he was able to breathe again, he released her, his arm falling from her. Beth tilted her head up to look at him and he stared down at her.

"You scared me, girl," he told her in a voice hardly above a whisper.

"I'm sorry," she said just as softly.

"And sorry for just grabbin' you like that," he said gruffly, taking a step back.

Beth looked at him for a moment – too closely, for his liking – and she then shook her head slightly. "It's alright."

Daryl moved his eyes towards the house and saw that his shouting had woke some of them up. Rick, with Judith in his arms, and Carol were both standing on the porch, watching them. He felt himself taking another step away from Beth, making sure there was distance between them and he avoided her eyes, feeling them still settled on him.

"Gotta take a piss," he said before turning and disappearing into the trees.

He had to take a few minutes and get away from her and just be on his own for a bit. Get himself collected. Maybe hunt something. That always calmed him down. He didn't know what Beth was doing to him, making him act like a crazy man, shouting for her and grabbing her like that.

And in front of the others, too. Beth and him may have spent the night outside together – just the two of them – yet, being caught hugging her and holding her to him, that was something he didn't want the others to see; thinking something was going on between the two of them when there wasn't.

When he returned nearly an hour later, everyone else was awake and the fire was built again, larger this time, as they sat on the ground around it, eating cans of fruit and a few scraps of rabbit leftover from last night.

His eyes instantly found Beth sitting next to Carl but as had become her new habit, she was sitting a bit apart from everyone. She looked at him the instant he appeared, seemed to sit up a bit straighter, but he went and sat down next to Rick.

"Anything?" Rick asked.

Daryl shook his head. "Pretty bare out there."

Rick nodded. "Been thinkin' it's time for us to move on anyway. What do you think? You think we should keep goin'?"

"Don't really matter either way, does it?" He shrugged. "Can't really stay here though. Nothin' worth stayin' around here for."

Rick nodded in agreement. "We'll pack up after we're done eatin' and get on goin'."

"We ain't really goin' to Washington, are we?" Daryl asked as Sasha, sitting on the other side of him, handed him a can of peaches.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Beth get up and he followed her as she walked away from the group, going into the trees. He tried to tell himself that he didn't have to get up and follow her. He looked back to Rick, who was watching him, knowing where his eyes had gone, and Daryl frowned but didn't say anything and neither did Rick.

"We gotta catch up with Maggie and Glenn," Rick said.

"Why?" Daryl blurted out before he could stop himself.

"They're family," Rick answered matter-of-factly and without room for argument.

Daryl snorted as he ate. "Family who had no problem runnin' off with mullet man when another member of our _family_ was still missin'."

He couldn't shake the memory of the way Beth's face had fallen when she realized that Maggie had left. Her own sister hadn't stuck around to help look for her, not-so-silently letting the others know that she thought Beth was probably dead and there was no point in looking for her. He didn't know if he wanted to find Maggie and put her near Beth again, to be honest, sister or no sister.

Daryl finished the peaches and then stood up, slinging his crossbow onto his shoulder. Rick looked up at him. "Gonna head towards the road," he said with no other explanation and began walking from the group.

"Daryl."

He turned and saw Carol coming out of the house and down the steps of the porch, blankets in her arms. He stopped and waited as she came to him.

"How'd you sleep?" She asked.

"Fine," he grunted.

"And Beth?"

He gave her an odd look but answered. "Fine."

Carol nodded her head at his answer. "And everything alright this morning?"

Daryl really didn't want to talk about this – even if it was Carol. "Fine," he said once more.

What could he really say anyway? That he had a momentary freak-out because he woke up and Beth was gone? The others didn't need to know that though he supposed it had been pretty obvious as to what had happened.

"You eat breakfast?" Carol asked and Daryl suppressed an impatient sigh.

Sometimes, Carol's mothering annoyed him. Yes, usually, he didn't mind at all and he rather liked it – having never had his real mother show any type of mothering towards him – but sometimes, Carol could just push and push when all he really wanted to tell her was he was a grown man and he could take care of himself.

"I'm fine," he said, his words a bit clipped and he hoped she would get the message.

"Never been a morning person, pookie," she teased him, laughing lightly, and then she turned, going towards the group again.

Daryl turned and began walking towards the road again, his eyes and ears keeping a lookout. When he stepped through the trees, he saw Beth at the bushes along the side of the road, plucking more berries. A dead walker laid nearby, obviously being taken out by her.

Beth turned her head when she saw him and he took that as a sign that it was alright for him to approach her.

"Elderberries are a natural flu remedy," she said and he figured she had learned that from her dad. "With the weather getting colder, we can't really afford to get sick."

"Smart," he murmured, watching her as she dropped the berries in a small bag in her hand.

For a few minutes, she picked and Daryl kept watch for any other approaching walkers. He tried not to think of the way her warm and soft body had felt against his chest. He felt like a dirty bastard when he imagined it again and he told himself that some filthy redneck shouldn't be putting his hands on Beth Greene anyway.

Beth took a berry and he watched as she popped it into her mouth, some of the berry juice stained on her fingers. She plucked another one and turned, offering it to him. He took it and tossed it into his mouth, chewing on it, watching her, as she went back to picking. It was quiet between them and yet, it wasn't the sort of quiet that made him uncomfortable and make him feel like it had to be filled with something. She picked and he kept watch and it was as if it was another of their routines though they had never done this before.

"Sorry 'bout this mornin'," he said but he wished he hadn't.

He wasn't really sorry and he didn't want to bring it up again.

"I'm not," Beth shook her head, still picking.

"You ain't?" Daryl looked at her cautiously and she shook her head again.

"It's been a long time since someone's hugged me," she said. She turned her head and looked at him with soft eyes. "Sometimes, we just need to be touched to be reminded we're still alive." At her own words though, he saw her eyes dim as if she was remembering something she didn't necessarily want to. "There was a guard at the hospital…" she turned back towards the berries so she wouldn't have to look at him but Daryl kept his eyes fixed on her, his body already growing tense as she began. "He wanted me but he got bit and died before he could…" she trailed off and Daryl's fingers tightened around the crossbow. "There were other guards, too. One…" she swallowed and he saw her fingers shake slightly as she didn't stop picking berries, needing the task to distract her. "He said I had skin like milk and he would always put his hand beneath my shirt so he could rub my hip."

Daryl wanted to tell her to shut up. He didn't want to hear any more.

But he wanted to hear everything.

He wanted to go back to Atlanta and though they were all dead, he wanted to kill them all again. He wanted to kill something.

"When you hugged me…" Beth looked back to him and he expected there to be tears but her eyes were dry and blank. "Don't say you're sorry, Daryl. It was the nicest hug I've had in a long time," she said quietly.

Daryl stared at her. He suddenly had a burning hatred for everyone else left alive in the world except for Beth. He hated people more than he hated walkers because at the end of the world, it wasn't the walkers that had done this to her. A man had killed her dad. A man had kidnapped her. A woman had beaten her. A man had touched her. Even her own sister had broken what was left of her.

He stared at her and knew that it wasn't just the walkers he had to protect her from. And he didn't care what she said about babysitting or anything else. He would protect her and keep her safe no matter what. He had to prove to her that he could.

She didn't give more details and he didn't want them. Not right now.

He wondered if he should hug her again. Did she want him to? If she thought his hug was nice, did that mean she wanted another one? He found he really wouldn't mind hugging her again.

But before he could take the steps towards her to do that, they could both hear that the group was coming. Daryl wondered if he felt relief at that.

They began walking up the road again and Beth closed the sack of berries, slipping it into her pack as Daryl fell in step next to her.

"Walking with me again?" She asked.

"Yeah," he said. "That okay?"

She shrugged and didn't say anything. They walked in silence, their arms occasionally brushing together, and when the group passed an abandoned car, Daryl waiting as Beth gathered shards of broken glass from the windows. They began following the group again. They had fallen behind but it didn't matter.

"You were shiverin' last night," Daryl told her. "We still need to be on lookout for a tent." Beth nodded and was silent.

They kept walking and kept their eyes out for anything and they didn't speak for nearly an hour.

"Big Macs," Daryl then said suddenly.

Beth looked at him, the corner of her mouth twitching in a smile of both amusement and confusion.

"The foods I miss the most," he clarified. "Taco Bell tacos, Big Macs from McDonald's and Hostess Ding-Dongs."

She laughed softly and nodded her head. "The Ding-Dongs were always my favorite, too."

He felt himself smirk. "I would have taken you for a Twinkie girl."

"Why eat a sponge cake when you can have chocolate?" She asked and her eyes looked as if they were sparkling like they used to. It made Daryl break into a smile and she smiled, too. "What about the Hostess Cupcakes?" She asked.

He shrugged. "A classic, that's for sure. I liked those yellow cupcakes they sold in those two-packs at the gas station. Merle and me, when we went out huntin' for a few days, I always packed a few of those with me."

She smiled and her eyes looked brighter as she focused them up on him. His stomach tightened and he wondered if the peaches were settling well with him.

"What did they always used to say? Two things would survive the apocalypse. Cockroaches and Twinkies," Beth smiled.

"I always heard cockroaches and Keith Richards," Daryl shrugged.

She laughed at that and the sound echoed in the air. A few turned back to look at them and Beth put a hand over her mouth but he could still see the laughter in her eyes and he grinned. Now that he saw light in her eyes again – no matter how long it would last – he realized just how dull her eyes had been for the past few days. He scrambled to think of something else to say, to keep that light, but his brain was drawing a blank and he swore at himself swiftly for being too dumb.

"Maybe, when we look for a tent, we can look for some Twinkies, too," she suggested.

Daryl nodded. "A whole crate," he said, almost promising.

Her smile – and the light – remained.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<br>**


	4. Chapter 4

**Seriously. How can I ever thank you enough? I am so happy with the response this story has been getting and I love you all for reading, leaving reviews and making it a part of your favorites and follows. Thank you!**

**PS - just one quick note. Please remember when reading that Beth has been through a very traumatic experience. **

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Four.**

Daryl and Rick entered the store first, as always, with Michonne, Carl, Tyreese and Sasha behind. Carol stayed back to hold Judith and Beth stayed back because Daryl told her to. She told him that she was perfectly capable of killing walkers but Daryl just shook his head and told her to stay put and she didn't feel like arguing with him.

The store was small – one of those general store types found in small towns – and Beth imagined that there was hardly anything left of use inside but Rick and Daryl had wanted to check it out nonetheless.

She looked around the street but it was empty and quiet and her eyes caught Judith in Carol's arm. The baby was slapping her hands over Carol's mouth and giggling when the woman pretended to gobble on them. Beth turned her head from the sight and pretended it didn't bother her. Judith was a baby and she hadn't seen Beth for so long. It didn't matter that Beth had loved her and cared for her as if she was her own when they were all back in the prison. Things changed and Carol and Tyreese took care of Judith now. Beth wasn't needed for that anymore.

She wasn't sure how long they had been in the store, clearing it out, but Carl came out, sprays of blood staining his neck.

"It's clear," he told them and even with the gun in his hand, he reached out and pulled Judith gently into his arms.

She was slow to follow Carl and Carol into the store, feeling another one of her attacks coming on, and she didn't want to have it around anyone, but she knew that if she was to stay outside, Daryl would come out to find her. She tried to focus on her breathing, inhaling and exhaling slowly, trying to kick everything out of her mind at the moment except for the fact that she had to breathe and didn't want anyone around her knowing that she couldn't.

The store was dark, the only light coming in through the windows at the front of the store, and as she suspected, there didn't seem to be that much left. Odds and ends and other merchandise scattered around the floor. She stayed near the front doors, not even feeling like seeing what else there was, as everyone else began scavenging.

She had learned, while with Daryl, that she needed very little to survive. Just water and a fire and some food to eat. She had blankets in her pack and an extra sweater she could pull on if she got too cold, a box of matches, a bag of elderberries and a flashlight. Her knife was strapped to her hip and what else did she need. The more things she took, the more she would just have to leave behind when they had to run again.

"Beth." Sasha came up to her, getting her attention, and she was smiling as she held up a thick yellow scarf. "Found this and thought you might want it since it's getting colder. Yellow makes me think of you," she then admitted and Beth gave a small smile.

"Thank you, Sasha."

She took the scarf and wrapped it around her neck and Sasha smiled before turning and returning to search for more things. Beth remained standing where she was, her fingers now playing with the ends of her newly acquired scarf. She looked over her shoulder to see that the street was still empty and no walkers had come up to the store before she looked back to the rest of the group. She scanned over everyone but she didn't see Daryl anywhere. She finally took steps further into the store, her eyes on the lookout for Daryl as she did.

As she walked past a small shelf display of cheap paperback books and magazines dated by several years, she saw a small brown leather soft-covered book. She picked it up and flipped through the blank, yellow-tinted lined pages. She thought of her old journal. She had had it at the farm and then in the prison and then when she had been with Daryl. She had lost it, somewhere, and she looked at this small journal and felt an ache in her chest. She wondered if someone had found it and had read through all of the pages she had written on. She couldn't remember all that she had written. All she knew was she wasn't the same girl.

She took the journal and slipped it into the back pocket of her blue jeans though she didn't know if she would write in it or not and continued looking for Daryl. She passed by Tyreese and he smiled at her as he continued on his way. She didn't really know Tyreese all that well – just that he was a part of their group and had been so for a while now. He seemed to be nice – taking care of his sister and of Judith and he reminded her of a friendly giant.

She passed the small cosmetics section and she caught her reflection in a row of hand mirrors. She hadn't really seen her reflection that hadn't been in water for so long, she stopped now and turned to look at herself. The bruises were almost completely gone now but the ugly scar on her left cheek was still there. It would be there forever now. She stepped closer to the mirrors and she lifted her fingertips to the bumpy and rough line of skin. She stared at it and at herself and she didn't know if she even recognized herself. She had faint circles beneath her eyes and she had lost even more weight in the hospital. She looked so pale and it only emphasized the ugly red scar on her cheek.

Daryl suddenly appeared behind her, his face behind hers in the mirrors, and she jumped, startled. "Sorry," he said as she turned to face him. "You find anything?"

She shook her head. "I wasn't looking. I just came to find you."

Daryl nodded, glancing past her at the mirrors, before back at her. "You want one?"

She shook her head again. "I don't really like looking at myself anymore."

He looked at her for a moment, studying her. "I got scars, too," he then told her quietly.

She looked at him and waited for him to say something else, something more, but he didn't and though she felt a little disappointed, she wasn't surprised. For as well as she knew Daryl now – which was better than most did – she still didn't know much about him at all.

"It ain't that bad," he said.

She almost felt like smiling at that. "Liar."

"Don't really lie anymore," he shrugged. "No point to it." He shifted the crossbow on his shoulder. "Nice scarf," he then commented.

Beth nodded and looked down at the mentioned article hanging around her neck. "Sasha found it. Said that she's reminded of me when she sees yellow."

He nodded and didn't say anything else and they both turned their heads when Carl, Judith still in his arms, came up the aisle to him. He was smiling and in that moment, he looked like any regular kid his age if the world hadn't fallen completely apart. The sight almost made Beth want to smile, too.

"Check out what I found," he said and held out his hand, revealing the five suckers in his palm. Daryl took one and tore the plastic wrapping away, popping a red one into his mouth, telling Carl nice job.

Beth didn't move to take one though. She stared down at the suckers and felt her heart completely stop. Her throat closed up and she stared at the small circular suckers – the sort found in pediatrician offices – and she thought of Gorman, him taking it from his mouth and pushing it between her lips, his breath warm on her face and his lips curled into a cold smile. She stared at these suckers now in Carl's hand, innocently waiting for her to take one, and she felt like throwing up.

She didn't say anything as she rushed past them. Didn't stop as Daryl said her name. Didn't stop as Rick asked her if she was alright as she rushed past him. She barely made it outside again before she threw up on the sidewalk. She heard a snarl from behind her but before she could grab her knife and dispatch the walker, she heard the familiar sound of the crossbow being shot and a bolt being released, the heavy thud of the walker dropping.

Daryl was beside her and she closed her eyes. "What's goin' on?"

Beth shook her head. She didn't answer as she stood up and wiped at her mouth. She didn't look at him. "I just need to be alone for a minute, Daryl."

He didn't say anything and she felt like she was going to throw up again. But she didn't want to in front of him.

She hated being so weak around him; around everyone. That's all she had ever been. She was nothing but the weak member that they were stuck with.

She acted as if she was the only one in their group to go through anything. Carl had had to shoot his own mother in the head. Daryl had had to stab his brother in the head after seeing him as one of those walkers. Carol had lost her daughter. Rick had lost his wife.

They had all lost people and had to do things they weren't proud of and they were all still able to get through each day without falling apart and throwing up. And now, acting like this, she had made their strongest member become nothing but a glorified nursemaid, taking care of her.

No wonder Maggie, her own sister, had assumed she was dead and didn't stick around.

She was never supposed to survive.

Still without looking at him and not saying another word, she put a hand over her mouth as she pulled out her hunting knife with the other and she began walking away from him. She expected him to follow but he didn't and she sighed with relief when she slipped into a narrow alleyway between two buildings and exhaled a breath.

She squeezed her eyes shut and yelled at herself in her mind to not cry. She was not going to cry. What she had been through was terrible, yes, but she wasn't special. Everyone had been through terrible things and she had to just get over it and move on. She had to move on or else, it would kill her. So she had been taken against her will and beaten and had barely made it out alive. The point was, she had made it.

She took a series of deep breaths and she felt her stomach settle until she felt as if the nausea had passed with no more threat. She took another moment and then she slipped from the alley onto the sidewalk again. Daryl was still standing outside of the store, his crossbow up and his eyes sharp on their surrounding area, but he looked at her the instant he heard her approaching. She saw her vomit on the sidewalk and she didn't know what to say. She couldn't even look at him.

Without stopping, she turned and went back into the store.

"You okay?" Rick asked the instant he saw her.

She nodded and didn't say anything as she continued walking. Back in the cosmetics section, there was a small glass counter with different kinds of make-up on display as well as jewelry. She took more bracelets and slipped them onto her wrist, covering the entire length of the scar there. At least she could cover one of her scars.

There was a sport store down the street and again, Rick and Daryl entered it first to check it out and clear it of any walkers. Inside, it was as picked over as the general store had been but they took their time, looking to see if anything had been left that could be of use.

Beth took all of the fishing hooks down from the wall and put them into her pack. She had no plans for their use but she never knew what might come up. She came upon Daryl at the back of the store and he was standing on the bottom of one of the shelves, digging around for something at the top of the shelving unit. Beth didn't say anything and instead, watched him, wondering what he was doing. Whatever it was, he found it and tossed it over his shoulder onto the floor, Beth stepping out of the way just in time before it hit her.

"Sorry," he said when he saw her standing there. "Last one left," he stepped down from the shelf. He picked up the small red duffel bag and slung it over his head and across his chest. He then picked up his crossbow again. "We still gonna sleep outside?" He asked.

She hesitated before she nodded slowly.

She wondered how big the tent was that he had found. Judging by how small the bag was, it couldn't be that big. And then she imagined sleeping with Daryl Dixon in a small tent – just the two of them. She felt a flutter then in her stomach that had nothing to do with the urge to throw up again. Instead, she looked at him and she found herself hoping for a small tent. She wanted to sleep close to him and feel his body's warmth and maybe, a faint touch or two. She wanted him to touch her. She couldn't deny that. She was still thinking of him hugging her from this morning and as she was pressed against his chest, how she had been hoping that he wouldn't let her go.

When had they reached this point between them where she was wanting him to touch her?

He was the only man she knew she wanted ever touching her.

"Did you look to see if they had any arrows?" She asked.

"Doubt they have any," he said.

"Doesn't hurt to look," she said and she moved past him, leaving the aisle, feeling him following her behind.

The cases up front had been broken and all of the guns, knives and ammo were, not surprisingly, all taken. Beth went behind the counter and knelt down, opening the drawers back there, opening and checking each one to see if anything remained.

The last draw she opened, she smiled with triumph. "Here," she pulled out a box and stood up again, handing it out to him. "Will these fit?"

"Even if they don't, we're takin' them," he said, glancing down to the size as he took the box.

"Two more," she said and pulled the other boxes from the drawer. "Here, I'll carry them."

She set her pack down and took the three boxes of new bolts and packed them away carefully before standing up again, slinging the pack onto her back. They both looked to see where everyone else was in the store. Daryl then turned his head towards her and she hesitated a moment before moving her eyes to meet his.

"Don't ask me if I'm okay," she said before he could even open his mouth. He stared at her. "I'm as okay as any of us are and I need to stop acting like I want the attention or special treatment from any of you. Especially you."

"You ain't," he said, his brow furrowed.

"We have bigger things to worry about than me, don't you think?"

"Here, Beth," Carol came up to them. "I ran out of room in my pack. Do you mind?" She held up two canisters of rat poison. At Daryl's raised eyebrow, Carol shrugged. "You never know," she smiled at him.

Beth turned so Carol could put the containers in her pack and when she turned around again, she saw Carol eying the tent slung on Daryl's back. Daryl didn't say anything as Carol stared at him and he stared at Carol. Carol then pursed her lips together, looking over to Beth. Beth didn't say anything either but she felt a warmth in her cheeks and she looked away as if she had been caught doing something wrong. Yes, she would be sleeping with Daryl but not _sleeping _with Daryl. Carol couldn't possibly think that, could she? Of course she could think that. Daryl had gotten a tent specifically for the both of them to share. The others probably thought that they were doing more than sleeping, too – especially the way they had been acting lately.

In the prison, they had never exchanged words with one another and now, they were constantly together, practically inseparable. She knew the rest of the group – not just Carol – was wondering what had happened between them.

Beth wished she had the answer.

…

* * *

><p>"Do you think there's a cure?" She asked him softly from their now usual spot at the back of the group as they walked.<p>

"Hell, no," Daryl answered with a frown.

Beth shook her head. "Me, neither." They were quite for a few minutes and then she looked back to him. "But we're going to Washington anyway?"

"We're goin' to find Maggie and Glenn," Daryl said but he seemed reluctant to do so, turning his head and looking at her.

Beth nodded and didn't say anything, looking away instead.

Maggie was her sister, the only family she had left, and yet, she wasn't in a particular hurry to see her again. She couldn't help but be hurt by Maggie just leaving. She couldn't imagine doing the same thing if the roles had been reversed. Of course, Maggie never would have let herself get taken like that. She was too strong. No one would have even dared to try.

"I know when you get married, your priorities shift. Glenn is her husband and he is her main concern now," Beth said, trying to explain Maggie's actions to herself.

"Bullshit," Daryl muttered. "Blood's blood. Marriage don't change that."

Beth opened her mouth to respond to that but she had nothing to say. She nodded slightly.

"I'd of done anything for Merle. Pretty much did," he said and she nodded again.

After their moonshine night, he had talked more and more about Merle. Just brief little stories or mentioning his name in passing when they were hunting and tracking.

_Just some redneck asshole with an even bigger redneck asshole for a brother._

Beth was so tempted then to slip her hand into his and interlace their fingers but she didn't. She couldn't. They had to be on alert and both needed their hands. She couldn't hold his hand as if they were just talking a nice afternoon stroll together. She couldn't hold his hand even if they were. She had before, yes, but that had been then and this was now and the moment in the cemetery between them had had a particular mood to it.

They stopped before sunset, finding a barn to sleep in for the night though after making sure it was clear for everyone, Daryl returned outside and started setting up the small tent for them near the entrance of the barn. She watched him as he assembled it, making it look easy, and she could just imagine how much she would struggle with the same task. She had never had to set up a tent before and didn't know the first thing to do. Daryl didn't even need the instructions, the pieces of paper fluttering away in the wind blowing that evening.

"Hey, you two," Rick approached them, Judith in one arm.

Daryl stood up and grabbed his crossbow before Rick could give any further instructions. He gave a nod. "We'll find something."

Beth almost felt like smiling as her fingers went to the hilt of her hunting knife but she didn't. Within a second's worth of conversation, both Daryl and Rick made her feel as if she was needed. Daryl was the hunter in the group and he easily could have gone without her but both he and Rick included her as if she was Daryl's partner and he needed her there with him.

Rick nodded and gave her a brief smile before turning back towards the barn.

Daryl looked to Beth. "Ready?" He asked and she nodded her head, giving him a faint smile.

Daryl had just begun teaching her how to track in the dusk, when the light was fading, when she had been taken and she still didn't know nearly enough to be of any use to him but she stayed close to him without getting in his way and studied everything he did. Occasionally, he would point to something and explain it to her in a lowered voice and she observed it and put it to her memory and nodded at him, urging him with her eyes to show her more.

After Daryl successfully killed a racoon and then an opossum, they began making their way back towards the barn.

"What does opossum taste like?" She asked.

"Like chicken," he shrugged and she heard herself giggle faintly.

"Thank you for getting us a tent," she then said. "I'm sure the barn is pretty much like sleeping outside anyway but… I just… I don't like being around the others too much."

He nodded but didn't say anything.

"I'm trying not to be hurt," she told him. "But it's hard," she admitted.

"You're allowed to be," he said in a soft voice.

She shrugged, trying to act like none of it bothered her, though Daryl glanced at her and she knew that he knew it was bullshit. Daryl always knew. He could always read her so easily.

At the barn, they built a fire and cooked the animal meat after Daryl cleaned both carcasses and they sat around, eating. There wasn't much talk, everyone exhausted from the long day. Carol, again, asked Beth to sing something but Beth shook her head, declining. She didn't feel like singing much lately. She didn't want to make too much noise – especially out in the open like this. It was just too dangerous and she knew some would just be annoyed with her singing as if everything was fine.

After they ate and the others went to the barn to settle in for the night, Beth and Daryl set up the alarms around their tent and then looking at one another, Beth gave him a faint smile. She hesitated for just a moment before crawling into the tent first and then Daryl crawled in after her, zipping up the front opening.

"Don't think walkers have the brains to figure out zippers," he said.

"Guess we'll find out," Beth said, hesitating again. She was right. The tent was very small.

She looked at Daryl and he seemed to be hesitating, too, and she knew he was waiting. She knew she would have to make the first move. She looked at him and she didn't feel nervous. This was Daryl. She had slept near him and beside him so many other nights before this one. Yes, the tent would be a tight fit for both of them but this was Daryl, she told herself again. She knew she wanted to be close to him.

She only ever felt safe when she was near Daryl.

She laid down then, slipping beneath the top blanket, and Daryl hesitated for just another moment more before he laid down, too, beside her, on top of the blanket. The right side of his body and the left side of her body were pressed together and she could feel how tense and stiff he was. She knew he was never comfortable with physical contact but she didn't want him acting as if this was the worst thing in the world for him to be doing – sharing space with her.

"I should tell you something," she said in an attempt to distract him. He turned his head and looked at her and she turned her head, meeting his eyes. "I really don't like opossum. It tastes nothing like chicken."

She smiled, then, and after a moment, Daryl chuckled, a smile pulling at his lips. She felt his body begin to relax a little.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**Tired of me thanking you yet? Well, if you are, too bad because I'm not going to stop. Thank you so, so much for reading, reviewing and making this a part of your favorites and follows! It just gives me so much motivation to always start work on the next chapter as soon as possible. **

* * *

><p>…<p>

**Chapter Five.**

Daryl had done so many stupid things in his life, it was impossible to count them all or even remember them all. But this might just take the prize for being the stupidest. What the hell was he thinking, getting a tent to share with Beth? Not just a tent but what was probably the tiniest tent left in the world? What the hell had been thinking when he grabbed this?

He had had trouble falling asleep the night before, even long after Beth, herself, had been able to drift off. It was cold outside but inside that tent, it was small and Beth's body was right against his and he felt sweat on the back of his neck from being too damn hot. He wasn't sure when or how but he finally was able to enter a light sleep.

Now, this happened.

He woke up and found that Beth was still asleep, her head now on his chest. When the hell had that happened? And why the hell wasn't he moving? He had been lying there for nearly ten minutes now, not moving because he didn't want to wake her up. He should wake her up though. He shouldn't just be lying there, making sure he didn't move so he didn't disturb her. He should disturb her. He should get her to move her head off of his chest because it should have never been there in the first place.

Beth Greene was scaring the shit out of him.

Give him walkers any day. He knew how to handle walkers. This, with her, was something other people could probably deal with but not him. And yet, he had taken it upon himself to see to her. Sometimes, she seemd fine. She would smile at him and laugh softly and he thought, maybe, it was going to be okay. But then, just as quickly, she would be throwing up and gasping for air and he had no idea what had happened to set her off so suddenly.

He felt her shift and knew she was starting to slowly wake up. He remained as still as possible as she rubbed her cheek against his chest a few times as if she was a fat cat, contently rubbing itself against a leg of furniture. Daryl did his best to ignore the heat of his body or the softness of hers and the way his jeans began to feel tight all of a sudden.

He looked at the top of her head and then he felt her go still, she realizing where her head was and what she was doing. In a flash, she flew up into a sitting position and looked at him with wide eyes.

"I am so, so sorry," she said in a rush and he saw her cheeks exploding in a deep red.

"'s fine," he grunted, sitting up as well, but he didn't look at her. He grabbed his crossbow and yanked back the zipper, pushing the flap open slowly, poking his head out and taking a careful look around, making sure the coast was clear.

He couldn't get out of the tent fast enough. He had to get away from her and her soft and warm body and her sweet scent in a shit-reeked world and her entire presence that choked him and wouldn't let him go.

Maybe she could sleep in the tent alone tonight. He would sleep outside and not have to wake up with any part of her touching any part of him. He could smell her everywhere on him and he felt the need to go kill something to cover it up.

After coming out of the woods after taking a piss and killing a couple of walkers stumbling nearby, he returned to the barn, everyone waking up as well. Rick saw him and beckoned him over with a cock of his head. He tried to not look for her but he couldn't seem to help himself. She was standing off with Michonne, looking at what canned foods they had left. He quickly looked away again, telling himself that now he had located her, he didn't need to be looking at her again.

"You look like shit," Rick commented.

"Are you ever gonna shave?" Daryl shot back.

Rick smirked and he and Daryl left the barn again, standing a bit away from everyone else.

Rick's smirk had faded and they now stood there, his face serious and grave. "We gotta find a place to stay for longer than a night. Everyone's exhausted and we can't keep movin' like this at this pace. Maybe take a couple of weeks to regroup and get some strength back."

Daryl nodded, finding no argument. He was actually a bit glad Rick was suggesting this. They were running on fumes. He didn't give a shit about Washington or Eugene's bullshit cure and even getting to Maggie and Glenn was low on his list of shit that had to get done. There seemed to be more and more walkers everyday, supplies was getting harder to come by and they needed to stay put long enough to come up with a more solid plan.

"I'm thinkin' you and Michonne start scoutin' today. You wanna take Beth?" Rick asked.

Daryl wanted to put some distance between himself and Beth right now but he found himself nodding his head anyway. He needed to stay away but he sure as hell didn't trust her with anyone else. He still had to be keeping her close. Just not _too_ close.

Rick nodded as well, not looking surprised at all with Daryl's answer. "Watch your step."

"You, too," Daryl said.

"If you haven't found anything by tomorrow afternoon, come back," Rick told him.

They headed back into the barn but they went in opposite directions – Rick heading towards Carl and Judith and Daryl going to Michonne and Beth. Beth lifted her head when she saw him approaching and he saw her cheeks staining a faint pink when she saw him. Daryl looked at her but then put his eyes to Michonne.

"Rick wants us to go out. Try and find a place we can stay at for a while," he said.

Michonne nodded. "Where are you thinking?"

Daryl shrugged. "Someplace in the mountains, maybe. Walkers can't climb for shit." He looked at Beth. "You're comin', too," he said and Beth's head jerked up to look at him. Daryl only looked at her for a moment before looking back to Michonne. "Make sure we got food packed and we'll be headin' out as soon as we got our shit together."

He began to walk away but a hand on his arm stopped him a few feet away. He naturally tensed at the touch even though he knew it was her and she quickly pulled her hand away as he turned to look at her. She seemed embarrassed and her hands hung limply at her sides. He didn't say anything as he stared at her.

"You really want me coming?" She asked.

"I ain't leavin' you here without me," he said and that was all he said before turning away again and walking away.

He was actually a little surprised that Beth had asked him that. Ever since she got back – since he got her back – he hadn't much let her out of his sight or she let him out of hers. He couldn't really stand to. And if he wasn't looking directly at her or placing himself right next to her, he was always well aware of where she was. He had to be. He had let her out of his sight once and she was taken away from him.

He knew the others had long ago noticed something changing between him and Beth but none had approached him about it. Rick had asked his questions but even when he asked, he seemed to know they would go unanswered and Daryl knew that Carol was dying to ask him what was going on but she hadn't asked yet and when she did, Daryl already knew that he would respond with a "nothing" no one would believe.

But, hell. He didn't know what was going on between him and Beth and he wanted to know but he didn't want to ask her about it either. He had come close to telling her something _that_ night but before he could, all hell broke loose and they had never had another moment.

That wasn't exactly true. They had had tons of moments since then – just them by themselves – and he was always able to feel something between them but he didn't know if she could feel it, too. He had never felt it before. Like he wanted to be around no one but her while at the same time, feeling the need to get the hell away from her. He couldn't breathe if she wasn't close but then, when she was, she was taking all of his damn oxygen.

There was a reason he wasn't one for romance. Made him damn uncomfortable and he stayed as far from it as he could. He didn't need it. He needed his bow and the woods and fresh air and the need to just be by himself. He didn't need someone mucking that up.

"Remember. Be back by tomorrow afternoon," Rick said as they were ready to leave. "I don't want too much space between us."

Daryl nodded and shifted the bow on his shoulder. "You'll be alright here?" He glanced back to the barn before back to him.

Rick's lips twitched in a smile. "I'll be alright. Will you be alright?"

"Always am," Daryl shrugged.

…

* * *

><p>They had been walking for nearly two hours and he hadn't said one word. None of them had. Daryl led the way and Michonne walked a bit behind him, off to the side. He didn't look but he knew Beth was in the back. She hadn't tried to talk to him and a part of him was grateful that the Beth who had returned didn't feel the need to chatter all of the time. And then he felt like shit for thinking that because what she had gone through at the hospital, it had made her want to stop talking.<p>

There were countless times when they had been walking together that he had wished she would shut the hell up. She had talked about her childhood, growing up on the farm, stories about her dad and mom, sister and brother, and her fucking _Leave it to Beaver_ life and Daryl had done his best to ignore her, wondering why the hell she had to babble so much.

He glanced back over his shoulder now at her. She had stopped and was looking at something on the ground and Daryl couldn't help but go back to her, pulling his crossbow down into his hands.

"What is it?" He asked.

She looked at him, startled that he was there and talking to her. He just kept looking at her.

"Look," she said, pointing, and he looked in closer. There was a few drops of blood on some of the leaves. "Human?" She asked, turning her eyes on him.

Daryl crouched down to look at it closer. He nodded. "Someone ran through here a few hours ago. Probably just cut themselves. Not that much blood for somethin' more." He stood up again and his fingers found her elbow. "Come on. Gotta keep movin'," he said as he gently pulled on her.

Michonne was still walking, ahead of them now, and Beth walked beside him though they were both quiet. Daryl felt his shoulders ease a bit though, knowing she was next to him.

His chest still felt a warmth as if her head was still resting on it from this morning. He tried not to think about it but the harder he tried, it seemed like that was all he could think about. And the more he thought about it, he knew, deep down, he hadn't necessarily hated waking up with her head on his chest like that.

Michonne suddenly stopped and drew her sword. Daryl instantly lifted his crossbow to his shoulder and looked to Beth, her hunting knife drawn.

"Stay here for a sec," he said before he rushed ahead to meet Michonne.

"Three," Michonne said though he saw them himself – three walkers shuffling their way. She looked at him. "Something doesn't feel right."

"No, it don't," he agreed. He looked back to Beth and jerked his head, signaling her to come. She did instantly. He looked back towards the walkers. There were five now, two more appearing in the trees. "Herd," he whispered the word. "I hear more comin'. We gotta hide."

"Where?" Michonne asked though she looked at him and seemed to already know what he was thinking. Without a word, she sheathed her katana and began looking around.

"What is it?" Beth asked in a whisper.

"Gotta climb, girl," he said. Her eyes widened slightly but she didn't ask questions. Michonne had already found a tree and was climbing and Beth began looking for one for herself. Daryl took her arm and pulled her after him, their feet quick and quiet. "Here."

He slung his crossbow over his head and then crouched down, linking his hands together. Beth put her foot in his hands and he hoisted her up, watching as she grabbed hold of the branch above them. She pulled herself up and when she was securely on the branch, Daryl looked to see where the walkers were. More than fifteen now and getting closer. He could hear their snarls now. He looked up at Beth and she looked down at him. Her eyes were still wide and she swallowed. He jumped and grabbed hold of the same branch, hauling himself up. Beth had moved so he had room to pull himself up next to her.

They both straddled the branch, his back against the trunk and she sitting in front of him. He looked to the tree Michonne had gotten in safely and then he looked down to see the first of the walkers beginning to pass beneath them. Beth scooted closer to him, her back against his chest, and Daryl felt her hold her breath. He didn't worry about her making noise. They had spent hours in a car trunk together as a herd passed by and she hadn't made a sound.

The walkers shuffled right beneath them and he began to count. Thirty. Maybe more. He felt himself holding his breath, too. He saw Beth's fingers clasped into the thighs of her blue jeans, digging into her skin, her knuckles white. Daryl didn't think twice as he reached past her and covered her hands with his. She was so stiff but when he touched her hands, she remained stiff, still barely breathed, but she turned her hands so she could clutch his.

Daryl wanted to tell her that it would be alright but he didn't speak a word.

A walker stopped beneath their tree and Daryl slowly pulled one of his hands from Beth's, going to the strap of his bow. It would be too risky to fire it, he knew, but the option was always there. The walker couldn't climb the tree but Daryl would be sure to put a bolt in its rotting head if it even tried.

After what felt like hours, the walker finally moved on and the herd disappeared further into the trees. Even then, none of them moved. Not yet. They all listened, making sure, not wanting to make a move too soon and get down from the safety of the trees until they were certain.

Daryl took his hand from the bow strap and tapped Beth on her thigh. She nodded and scooted slowly forward so he could remove the crossbow from his back. He looked to Michonne and gave her a single head nod before he swung his legs around as quietly as he could, he dropped back down the ground. He gave their surroundings a quick survey, his bow aimed and ready to fire at anything that moved. But the woods around them were quiet once more.

He lowered the crossbow and then turned back towards the tree, looking up at Beth. He gestured for her and Beth swung her legs around, taking a moment before she dropped to the ground, her hands finding Daryl's shoulders and his hands grasping her hips, helping her steady herself.

"Alrigh'?" He asked.

She tilted her chin up towards him and nodded. "Are you?"

He smirked a little and nodded before moving back, his hands dropping from her, ignoring the warmth of her body still on his fingertips.

They resumed walking, all on high alert, Michonne on point, Beth walking in the middle and Daryl walking behind. The sun was getting lower in the western part of the sky and he knew they would have to set camp up soon but after that herd, he was reluctant to stop anywhere in these woods.

He watched as Beth as she walked in front of him, her fingers around the hunting knife hanging at her side. Her ponytail swung slightly back and forth and her steps were quiet, the way he had showed her. He would look around but then his eyes would always come back to her, as if assuring himself that she was still in front of him. He was almost glad Merle was dead because he couldn't see him acting like this. Calling him a pussy would be the nicest thing Merle would call him.

The trees began to thin out and Daryl quickened his strides so he was now beside Michonne. He looked at her and jerked his head to their left.

"How do you know?" Michonne asked.

"Just a feelin'," he shrugged and he veered off, Michonne and Beth both following.

When he saw a road ahead through the trees, he almost allowed himself to smile. There was a car – long abandoned – parked in the middle of the two lanes and Daryl kept a watch as Beth, without needing to be told, went to it, opening the door and slipping into the seat. He had showed her how to do it and she leaned down now, finding the right wires.

Michonne looked surprised as Beth attempted to hotwire the car and then looked at Daryl. He just shrugged a little though. There was a lot that he had taught her and things she had taught herself and after everything she had clearly been through, why were people still surprised that she could obviously handle some things on her own?

He smiled when the engine turned over and caught, the car rumbling to life. Beth smiled faintly, obvious pride shining in her eyes, and Michonne quickly got into the backseat while Daryl hurried over to the front passenger side, sliding in. Beth slammed her own door and shifting the gear stick, she headed down the otherwise deserted road.

"Keep your eyes out," he told both women unnecessarily. What else would they be doing? He leaned over the middle console and into Beth to see how much gas there was. Half a tank. They could make it a while and he'd be sure to stay on the lookout for other cars, too, to siphon more gas.

"Daryl," Beth said his name softly.

He immediately did look. "No," was all he said.

Beth's fingers tightened a bit around the steering wheel but she didn't stop or even slow down as they passed the man walking along the side of the road, a pack on his back. Daryl expected her to protest but she didn't. Instead, she just kept driving, dodging a couple of walkers stumbling in the road.

"Take this road," he said and Beth slowed enough to make the left hand turn. The asphalt was gone and the gravel kicked beneath the tires.

"Why?" She asked, glancing at him before back to the narrow drive.

He shrugged but didn't answer. He knew roads like this. Mountain roads that no one but locals ever took.

The incline was small and steady and she drove them further up. As he expected, there was a small gas station nestled in the trees on the side of the road. He pointed to it without a word and Beth pulled in next to a pump as if she was going to be filling up.

The building wasn't a typical Shell station. It looked more like a house – a wood two-story building with a wrap-around porch and two pumps in front. Signs still hung in the windows advertising cold drinks, cigarettes and low lotto prices. Daryl and Michonne got out, doing a quick sweep. Beth cut the engine and got out to join them. Daryl crept up the steps, the wood creaking beneath his feet, and he banged on the front double doors.

Nothing.

Beth opened the door for him and he and Michonne entered, doing a sweep, opening doors and making sure they looked in every crevice. Beth joined them and they then checked the upstairs apartment where the gas station owner had lived with his family once upon a time.

It was quiet and there didn't seem to be anything. But just as Daryl began to lower his crossbow, Beth opened a closet door. The walker immediately fell out onto her as if it had been trapped in there forever and had been struggling to escape. The walker fell onto Beth and knocked them both to the floor. He heard the wind knock out of her but just as he took aim, Beth rose her knife and stabbed the walker in its head, its snapping jaws immediately stopping as it slumped onto her.

"Ugh," Beth said as Daryl tugged the walker from her and then held out his hand for her.

She took it and he easily pulled her to her feet. There was blood splattered on her neck and face. Daryl reached out before he could stop himself and swiped his thumb along her jaw. He almost hated how soft her skin was and he hated himself for touching her. Why did he have to touch her? He had told himself just this morning to stay the hell away from her.

And as if remembering that suddenly, he yanked his hand away and turned, ignoring the way Beth was looking at him. She was beginning to look as if she actually wanted him touching her. From what she had told him, hadn't she had enough men pawing at her?

Downstairs, Michonne stood there, katana at her side, her eyes taking in their new surroundings.

"Don't gas stations usually sell junk food?" She asked with a frown "Where are all of the shelves?"

There were a few coolers, empty, along the side wall and a counter with a cash register, a wall of cigarettes behind that, but there was nothing else. The room was large and bare.

Daryl chuckled. "This ain't a typical gas station."

He went to the counter, sliding on top and over it to stand on the other side. He looked down beneath the counter, and sure enough, just as he suspected. He pulled out several bags of what looked like small blue crystals and then a crate containing glass jars, dumping it all on the counter.

"Oh, no," Beth sighed softly and Daryl felt like smiling at her reaction.

He looked to Michonne. "Meth and moonshine," he told her. "People who came here knew what they were comin' here for."

"We can't have a baby around meth, Daryl," Beth frowned.

"It's not we're all gonna be smokin' it and lettin' her suck on some," he said. She rolled her eyes. "This place could be good for a little bit. Off the beaten path so to speak. We're up a bit, hidden, there's plenty of space for all of us and when there's a place like this, there's usually a small grocery store nearby."

Michonne looked unconvinced but Beth was looking at him closely, studying him. She took another look around. It was dirty and dusty but it was warm and dry. She then looked back to him and nodded her head slightly.

"It could work," she then agreed with him just like they all knew she would. "But," she pointed to the moonshine and meth. "We're throwing that out before we bring Carl and Judith back here."

He nodded. No shit, he wanted to say. "Wanna help me drink it then?" Daryl asked, pulling one of the jars out, and he felt like grinning when Beth rolled her eyes and tried her hardest not to smile.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	6. Chapter 6

**"It's been very interesting to have this grunting, wild animal paired with this nice, young, eloquent girl who speaks her mind." - Norman Reedus**

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Six.**

She was almost glad their group was as small as it was because when she and Daryl took the car back to the barn as Michonne stood watch back at the gas station, they were all able to squeeze in. It was a tight fit but they all managed it and Beth drove them back to the gas station they had found. As the group filed in to explore their new shelter, Rick and Daryl stayed outside to talk and Beth wasn't quite sure what to do with herself.

She stood on the porch, surveying what was now their surroundings for the next couple of weeks. Nothing but trees and the gravel road. It was quiet and Daryl was right. They definitely seemed to be off the beaten path and walkers weren't known for their skills climbing uphill. She didn't want to get her hopes up though. She had learned to stop doing that. She thought of her daddy and what he had once said about hope but too many things had happened now for her to hold onto his words.

Rick and Daryl's talk ended and they turned to head back inside. Neither said anything when they saw her on the porch, her head resting against one of the posts. Rick climbed the steps but Daryl stayed on the ground below, looking up at her. Beth and his eyes locked for a moment and she felt a pull in her chest towards him. She thought of the tree earlier, the way he had held her hands and she had been against him, feeling his warm breath on her neck. She had almost wished the herd had lasted forever so she could sit there with him.

The touches were becoming more frequent. A hand on her arm or elbow, his thumb swiping across the scar on her cheek, hugging her, holding her hands. Daryl was never the sort for physical contact, usually stiffening until it was done or somehow avoiding it all together. But lately, she felt his hands on her more and more and she wanted to feel them. She wanted to feel the way her stomach clenched and her heart raced and the way her skin warmed just when he was near. She never wanted to stop feeling that.

Rick stopped beside her and she turned her head from Daryl to look at her. "This is a good find," he said, his lips in a small smile.

"Daryl found it," Beth shrugged her shoulders.

"But you drove," Rick continued.

Beth lowered her eyes to her fingers fidgeting in front of her. "To where Daryl told me to."

She wished Rick would stop talking to her, honestly. She respected Rick. He had been their leader for so long and she would follow him where he told them to go – even, reluctantly, to Washington if that was the decision. She had taken care of his daughter without complaint, actually enjoying having Judith always with her. Caring for their leader's daughter, it had made her feel like maybe she was a necessary part of the group.

She had been naïve but not stupid. She knew, deep down even then, that even taking care of Judith, it hadn't mattered. She wasn't like Maggie or Daryl or even Carl. She wasn't strong and she was just as much as a burden on the group as a baby was.

And when she was taken, it was glaringly apparent just how little she actually mattered to any of them. To think it was one thing but to be faced with the cold hard truth was another.

She looked at Rick now and she respected him but she knew she didn't necessarily have to like him to respect him. He was just like the others. Surprised she was still alive; looking at her like it was only a matter of time. If Daryl wasn't looking out for her, none of them would be surprised if she was the next one to go.

Rick cleared his throat but he didn't say anything else and when he went inside, Beth released a heavy breath. She lifted her eyes and looked back to Daryl, finding that he was staring at her and had been the whole time.

"You ready?" He asked.

She didn't ask where they were going or what they were doing. She just came down the steps and went to him. He didn't say anything as they crossed the gravel lot of the gas station and began following the gravel road upwards. Judging by the position of the sun, it was late afternoon and it was getting colder as the sun got lower.

She felt good, it being just the two of them. She felt like she could breathe and she suddenly wanted to find another place for them to stay, just the two of them away from everyone else. She knew they couldn't; knew he wouldn't. But she still imagined it. Last night in the tent had been one of the first times they had slept at the same time. Usually, one would keep guard while the other slept but not last night. Last night, he had been right next to her and she had fallen asleep to the sound of his breathing and the feeling of his warmth.

This morning, she woke up with her head on his chest as if she had done it every other morning; as if her head was supposed to be there on his chest.

She wanted to find another porch with him – one where they could sit out on and talk and he could tell her things and she could tell him and it could be just the two of them in the world for a little bit. That was the night it all changed for her. He had gotten drunk and they had screamed and fought and then later, it was calm and quiet and he had started talking. He hadn't needed her to urge him to. He had just started talking and she had listened to every word he said, committing it to memory because Daryl just opening up and talking didn't just happen.

She started looking at him as something more that night. He wasn't just the redneck hunter; the man she was stuck with. That night, to her, Daryl Dixon became so much more to her.

"There," Daryl broke the silence and she looked ahead, seeing a tiny white building on the curve in the road, Milton's on the sign. "Be on the lookout for some Twinkies," he told her and she smiled at him, seeing his own lips twitch in a small smile in return.

There were four walkers trapped inside and Daryl took out two while Beth took out the other two. When the air was quiet around them again, she looked around and nearly gasped. She couldn't believe it.

"How is this possible?" She asked, looking at him before looking back to all of the shelves, still almost all completely stocked with food, just a few things slightly upturned and missing.

Daryl shrugged, glancing outside, making sure everything was still clear, before back. "Not that many people 'round here and who was probably either died or left before it got real bad. People up here in parts like this… they can live without stores like this. Self-sufficient."

Beth nodded, taking a step forward and then stopping herself. "We should have brought more people with us."

"Wanted to check it out first 'fore we did that," he said. "We'll take just what we can carry for now and we'll come back with the others tomorrow."

She nodded again and then immediately went to the canned food aisles. Vegetables and beans and fruit. She saw the boxes of pasta and rice and it was all too much, she almost felt overwhelmed. She didn't even know what to take now even though Daryl had said they would be back tomorrow.

"Beth," Daryl suddenly said her name and she immediately turned towards him. "Catch."

A white box sailed in the air and she caught it, gasping instantly. She lifted her head to look at him and he was smiling at her from the end of the aisle. She felt a laugh bubble in her throat and then she rushed to him. She didn't think about what she was doing or how he would react. She threw her arms around him in a hug, the box of Twinkies still clutched in one of her hands. She hugged him tightly and waited for him to stiffen and not hug her back and to pull away, not meeting her eye as he walked away somewhere else.

But she didn't feel him stiffen. He didn't hug her back, his arms remained at his sides, but he didn't stiffen and he didn't pull away.

Beth smiled to herself, closing her eyes. She turned her head and pressed her nose to the leather of his vest. She didn't know how long she hugged him but she didn't care because he wasn't pushing her away and she didn't want to let him go.

"I missed you so bad when I was gone, Daryl Dixon," she whispered and she clenched her eyes shut because she could feel them beginning to burn.

And then, just as he had the morning before when he couldn't find her, Daryl lifted one of his arms and wrapped it around her neck, holding her close.

And there it was. The warmth started at her neck where his arm was and it spread both up to her head and down to the rest of her body, to the very tips of her fingers and toes. She felt so warm and so safe with him in that empty grocery store and she didn't ever need to go anywhere else or be with anyone else. She just wanted to be with Daryl. He was the only person she had in her life; the only person she needed.

Suddenly, she heard Dawn's voice in her head.

_Out there, you are nothing_.

Dawn was wrong though. She was something; something to Daryl. He hadn't said anything of the sort but with a man like Daryl, you had to look at what he didn't say and how he acted and being the only one who looked for her, who _cared_ enough for her to look, it had to mean she was something to him.

He was hugging her like she was.

That night, with the doors secure – the two in front and one leading out back – they all sat in the main room of the gas station and had a feast of rice and beans and for dessert, Beth handed out the Twinkies and there was laughter and excited talking and everyone's spirits seemed to be in such a high place. Even Beth felt herself smiling and laughing a bit as Rick fed Judith a small bit of Twinkie and the baby got the cream filling all over her lips.

And this time, when Sasha asked her to sing something, Beth slowly nodded her head and agreed, taking a moment to decide which song she would sing that night. She thought of when it was just her and Daryl and some of the songs she would sing to him. She grew to know what he preferred. She had become his jukebox.

"Mama told me, when I was young/Come sit beside me, my only son/And listen closely to what I say/And if you do this/It will help you some sunny day/Take your time/Don't live too fast/Troubles will come and they will pass/Go find a woman and you'll find love/And don't forget son/There is someone up above."

As she sang, she watched as Carol went outside to join Daryl on the porch, bringing him a Twinkie, and when she finished singing and conversations around her resumed, Beth still couldn't help but watch Daryl and Carol outside. She knew she shouldn't. She had no business watching. Daryl and Carol had a relationship she would never understand and of course Carol had every reason in the world to go out and keep Daryl company. And of course Daryl would want his friend, or whatever Carol was to him, out there with him.

When Rick finally suggested that they all get some rest, Beth took her blankets and went to the space behind the counter. A freezing rain had begun to fall a few hours earlier, just as she and Daryl had returned from the store, so they wouldn't be outside in the tent tonight. She spread the blanket out and then laying down, she covered herself with the other. She curled on her side and closed her eyes and tried to remind herself that she didn't care about Daryl and Carol out on the porch.

Why would she care? There were so many other things in the world to care about and this wasn't high school. She had absolutely no claim on Daryl and why would anyone, including herself, think she did? It was like Carol had told her.

Now, Daryl could go back to being Daryl.

She felt silly and stupid and she closed her eyes, trying to get her brain to shut up.

Her eyes snapped open and she thought, maybe, only minutes had passed but when she saw just how dark it was, both in the station and outside, she realized it must have been a few hours since she had fallen asleep. It took her eyes another moment to adjust and then she looked to see what had so suddenly woken her up, her fingers going to her knife.

But in the darkness, she saw the familiar shape and though she was a bit confused, she relaxed immediately.

"Didn' mean to wake you," he whispered roughly.

"Is everything alright?" She asked in her own whisper.

Daryl nodded and she realized what he was attempting to do. She felt that warmth again. Just like that.

She scooted as far against the counter as she could to give him room and he sat down in the space she created. He then laid down beside her and unlike last night in the tent, this night, he seemed completely relaxed lying next to her and being so close to her.

Beth laid on her side, facing him, and watching him as he laid on his back, his eyes already closed. She wanted to ask him why he had come to sleep beside her when there was so much room everywhere else and yet, she seemed to already know the answer. And she smiled faintly as she continued watching him.

Maybe he needed to be as close to her as she needed to be close to him.

"Quit it," he suddenly mumbled.

Beth snapped her eyes closed and bit her lip to keep from giggling. "Sorry," she whispered.

Daryl mumbled something but then she heard his breath drop off within seconds and she knew he had fallen asleep. She opened her eyes again and watched him. Her stomach was pulling upwards and her fingertips burned with wanting to reach out and touch him but she didn't dare. She was afraid that if she touched him, she wouldn't be able to stop.

She tucked her hands beneath her chin and began to feel her eyes flutter closed. With Daryl right next to her, she had no trouble falling back asleep.

When her eyes fluttered open again, the gas station was lighter with the greyness of predawn. Daryl was still asleep beside her and on the other side of the counter, she heard others in the room begin to wake as well. She wondered if they knew Daryl was here with her and if they did know, she wondered if they would be surprised.

As usual, now that she was awake, her bladder was also awake. She had to get up even though her brain was reluctant to do so. She didn't want to leave this spot. She wanted to stay close to Daryl and watch him sleep and hope that this was something they would do every other night for the rest of their stay at the gas station. She didn't want to ask though. She would just wait and see at nightfall to see what he would do.

She began to move and as soon as he felt her do so, he woke up.

"Bathroom?" He grunted.

She nodded and he sat up, grabbing his crossbow and getting to his feet. He held his hand out for her and after taking a roll of toilet paper from her pack, she took it, bouncing up to her feet. She smiled at him and he looked at her, seeming like he was going to smile, too, but he seemed to stop his lips in time. Everyone was awake now but Rick and Carol seemed to be the only ones to look over at them, popping up behind the counter together.

Daryl stepped out first and headed for the front doors and Beth followed behind. Outside, it was so cold, it stung her in the face and shocked her, almost made her take a step back as if she had just been slapped. The freezing rain the night before now made everything sparkle in the rising sun and it was so beautiful, she stopped for a moment to look at it.

"Watch out here. It's slick," Daryl told her as he went down the steps and she followed.

She took it slow but she slipped nonetheless and felt herself falling forward. But instead of meeting the ground like she expected and braced herself to, she fell against Daryl, his hands firmly gripping her. Beth felt a rush of heat flood her cheeks as she looked up at him.

"Thank you," she said softly.

"You alright?" He asked, looking down to her face.

"Just embarrassed," she said, straightening herself but she kept her hands on his arms, suddenly not entirely ready to step back.

"Why?" He frowned at that and she almost smiled. Getting embarrassed didn't seem to be a part of Daryl Dixon's DNA makeup.

"Sorry," she then said and forced herself to take a step back, his hands falling from her hips though she could still feel the weight long after they were gone. "Boys," she pointed to one side of the building. "And girls," she pointed to the other side, behind her.

Daryl smirked a little and nodded his head. He didn't move though as she turned and only when she was on the side of the building did she hear him step away.

She went to a nearby tree and unbuttoned her jeans. It was so cold that morning and her breath appeared in sharp clouds in front of her and she tried to pee as quickly as possible.

A branch suddenly snapped from somewhere in the woods behind her and she instantly froze. She didn't move and she strained her ears, trying to listen for another sound.

She quickly wiped herself with some of the toilet paper and hurried, pulling her underwear and jeans back up. She turned towards the wood, her knife already drawn in her hand. Another branch snapped and she listened for the familiar snarl of a walker but the fact that she didn't hear that terrified her. Her heart was racing and even though she told herself to stay calm and keep her mind focused and clear, she heard another snap rustling of leaves and she knew it wasn't a walker. The steps weren't dragging and they weren't growling. Whatever was in those woods, it was human.

She took a few steps back, wondering if she had time to go get Daryl.

She quickly shook the idea out of her head. She didn't need Daryl to protect her. Hadn't she learned she didn't always need to go to Daryl for everything? She was perfectly capable on her own. It was time everyone saw that.

Her fingers tightened around the hilt of the blade.

A man then emerged from the trees – scraggly and greasy dark hair, a matching scraggly beard, scars on his face as if he had once had bad acne, pale and thin and dirty.

Beth took a step back, making sure the man could see her knife. When he looked at her, he looked surprised for a moment and then a slow smile spread across his lips, revealing a few missing teeth.

"Well, 'ello, there," the man greeted her, smile intact, and Beth felt nervous as she never took her eyes from him. Never take your eyes off your target, she heard Daryl's voice in her head. She knew she would have felt nervous if anyone had come out of those woods even though she was trying her hardest to not act like it. "What's a pretty thing like you doin' all out here by yourself?"

"I'm not by myself," Beth informed him.

He raised an eyebrow. "No?" He looked around where they stood before back at her. His smile grew a bit. "Sure looks like you're alone. 'Course, I'm not alone either. Got a camp a ways back," he pointed his thumb back over his shoulder into the woods. "You got a camp?"

Beth shook her head. "No."

The man took a step towards her and she immediately countered it back with one of her own, making sure the same amount of distance remained between them.

"Been a while since I've seen someone who ain't dead," the man commented. "And you don't have a camp?"

"No," she said again.

"Pretty thing like you don't have a camp and you're out here all by yourself? Not very safe," he said, looking at her closely. "Why don't you come back with me? My friends and I can take care of you."

His words made her stomach churn.

"How many friends do you have back at your camp?" She asked.

Her question made his smile widen as if he was happy she had inquired. "Me and two others. I'm from 'round here and I 'membered this place had a few things we could use in our camp."

She wondered which he preferred. The meth or the moonshine.

She kept her face completely blank as she saw Daryl creep from around the back of the building, coming up to the man from behind. He didn't make a single sound and the man was so intently focused on her, he had no idea Daryl was coming, the crossbow aimed right at his head. She had wanted to take care of this by herself but she felt nothing but relief upon seeing Daryl there with her now.

"I told you. I'm not alone," she reminded him and she hoped her voice sounded as strong as she intended it to be.

"I'm not seein' anyone with you, sweetheart." He took another step towards her.

"Seems like you didn' look hard enough," Daryl finally spoke in his gravelly voice.

Beth watched as the man's smile instantly slid from his face and slowly, he turned to see who was over his shoulder. When he saw the crossbow, Beth swore she could hear him gulp. Daryl never took his eyes off of the man as he took a step back so the man could turn to fully face him, his hands slowly lifting up in surrender.

"Take it easy, friend. I ain't doin' nothin'," he told Daryl. "I'm just talkin' with her. Like I told her, it's been a long time since I've seen someone who ain't dead. Just makin' conversation."

Daryl didn't say anything.

Beth felt herself hold her breath and nobody moved. Daryl kept his crossbow pointed and the man kept his hands up and Beth wasn't sure what to do. Should she go get Rick and the others? But she didn't want this man to know where everyone else was. He said it was just him and a couple of others but what if that wasn't the truth and there were more of them?

Couldn't they just find one place left in this world that was safe for a few days?

"If I could just get what I came here for, I'll be on my way," the man told Daryl.

She saw Daryl's finger hover over the trigger and she felt her stomach lump in her throat. Would Daryl kill him? She almost hoped the man didn't do or say anything stupid. He may make her want to take a bath just from him looking at her but she didn't want Daryl to kill someone who wasn't a walker in cold blood. That's not who Daryl was.

Beth slowly took steps to Daryl's side so she stood beside him and could look at the man again. The man's eyes returned to Beth, lingering on her, before back to Daryl and the crossbow.

"If it's just the two of you, you can come back to my camp wit' me. My friends and I would be happy to have you," he was smiling again. "We could all have some fun."

"Not interested," Daryl said.

"Shit, friend. Gotta have some fun in a world like this nowadays. I'm sure bein' with you, your girl here could sure use some," he said.

Without hesitation, Daryl fired the crossbow, releasing the bolt.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<br>**


	7. Chapter 7

**Oh my goodness, all of the reviews for the last chapter were all so wonderful. Thank you so much!**

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Seven.**

"Fuckin' tweeker," Daryl muttered to himself as the man groaned in pain, now on the ground, his hand to the shoulder where the arrow was sticking out from. He looked to him and then to Beth. She was looking at him with slightly wide eyes and he wondered what she was thinking. He could guess. "You okay?" He asked.

Beth didn't say anything but she quickly nodded her head.

Daryl didn't quite believe her but he nodded his head, too. He let out a sharp whistle and then crouched down next to the man. "How many are in your camp?" He asked.

The man didn't seem to hear him though, whimpering and groaning from pain. Daryl stood up again before he followed through on his urge to rip the bolt straight from his shoulder. He glanced to Beth and saw she was still looking at him. He was almost afraid to look at her; afraid that he would look at her and see her own fear towards him.

But he looked and didn't see that. She was looking at him with something he almost could interpret as gratitude. He wasn't sure though. He didn't want to get his hopes up that maybe she was okay with what he had just done.

"You okay?" He asked again and he lifted a hand, his thumb swiping lightly across the scar on her cheek, his eyes staring into hers and hers stared into his.

She nodded again. "Thank you," she said softly, a breath of relieved air escaping her. "He told me there were two others at his camp. He didn't tell me where. Just somewhere there," she gestured to the woods and he nodded.

He turned his head and dropped his hand from Beth's cheek as he saw Rick coming around to the side of the gas station where they were, his gun drawn. Carl and Michonne were coming, too, and Daryl looked down to the man on the ground, still groaning.

"What happened?" Rick asked.

"Came up on Beth so I came up on him," Daryl explained with a shrug. "From a camp somewhere in the woods. Said there was him and two others."

Rick looked to Beth. "Are you alright?" It was his turn to now ask her that.

Beth swallowed and nodded. "I'm fine. Daryl took care of it."

"She was handlin' it fine on her own. Just thought I'd help," Daryl said and he felt Beth's eyes drift over to him but he didn't look at her again as he crouched down beside the moaning tweeker, Rick on the other side. He looked to Rick and Rick, reading his mind, gave him a slight nod. "I'm just gonna take this back if you don't mind," he said as he pulled the bolt from the man's shoulder, the man crying out.

Rick clamped a hand over his mouth to muffle him. "Shut up," he growled.

Feeling something at his backside, Daryl looked over his shoulder to see Beth pulling the rag that he usually kept there from his back pocket and then she knelt down at the tweeker's head. Without a word, she began tying the rag around the man's shoulder, binding the wound and keeping it from bleeding out more. Daryl wanted to tell her that she was too nice for her own good but he didn't say a word.

"What do you want here?" Rick asked him and then slowly lifted his hand from the man's mouth so he could maybe answer him.

He just whimpered and then yelped when Beth tied the rag tightly – perhaps a bit too tightly – and Daryl felt his lips twitching in an amused smirk.

"When we found this place, there was some meth under the cash register. He's here for that," Daryl answered for him. "I know a tweeker when I see one."

Rick nodded and then looked back to Michonne and Carl. "Daryl, Carl, and I are going to go find this guy's camp. See if there really are only two more of them. You stay here and keep an eye out on everyone," he said to Michonne, who nodded in agreement. He then grabbed the tweeker's arm. "Get up," he was back to growling as Daryl helped him haul the man to his feet.

Beth stood up as well, blood now staining her hands. Without a word, Daryl gently curved his fingers around her elbow and led her away from the others so they could talk in private.

"You okay?" He asked for the third time.

This time, she smiled a little. "I'm okay."

He lifted his hand again and his thumb ran along the scar on her cheek, her eyes fluttering at his touch. She then stepped to him and her arms slid around his waist, her head turning and resting on his chest. Daryl hesitated for only a moment before he lifted his arm not holding the crossbow and circled it around her neck.

"Thank you," she murmured.

"Just tryin' to keep you safe," he said.

"You always do," she said and he nearly snorted at that. He hadn't kept her safe at all and they both knew it.

"Stay inside 'til I get back," he said and he expected her to protest but instead, she nodded and giving her arms one more squeeze around his waist, she then stepped away.

He didn't look at her again as he went back to Rick, still holding the arm of the tweeker. He glanced to Michonne and he didn't have to say anything to her but she knew and she nodded her head one time to him and he clenched his jaw as he looked back to the tweeker.

Michonne would look after Beth while he was gone and he could trust Michonne. He didn't have to worry about her right now. He had other things that needed his attention.

…

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><p>The man was tripping over his own feet and Daryl was getting impatient.<p>

Rick had shoved a rag in his mouth and held his wrists in one hand as he pushed him forward. He kept whimpering about his shoulder but Daryl, Rick and Carl all ignored him. Daryl wasn't entirely sure what Rick wanted to do when they got to this camp but he had an idea and he wasn't going to oppose it for a second. Just the thought of him smiling at Beth and suggesting he and his buddies do things to her, it made him want to turn around again and shoot the tweeker with a bolt right between his fucking eyes.

He had been on first shift of night duty the night before, standing on the porch under the overhang, watching the freezing rain fall like glass shards and keeping himself at attention while trying not to think of how cold he was, when the door behind him opened. He had almost expected it to be Beth but through the glass window, he saw her sitting on the floor, her soft voice singing a Lynyrd Skynyrd song. It was Carol who had come out, smiling at him, and he smiled a little in return.

"You and Beth hit the jackpot this afternoon," she said while handing him a Twinkie.

"Everyone full?" He asked, leaning back against one of the posts of the porch.

"For the first time in a very long time," Carol nodded. "And what about you? Did you get enough to eat?"

Daryl nodded. He tore away the plastic wrapping around the yellow sponge cake and he couldn't help his eyes from floating to the window and looking at Beth. She was no longer singing but she was smiling faintly – not one of those true Beth Greene smiles but not a completely fake one either – at something Carl was saying.

"Don't worry, Daryl," Carol said softly. "She's still in there. She won't disappear." Daryl looked at her as if she was crazy but Carol knew him too damn well and she wasn't one he could fool. "You two got out of the prison together?" She asked though she already knew the answer and Daryl nodded. "And you saved her?"

Daryl instantly shook his head, pausing to swallow his mouthful of Twinkie. "She's tough. She saved herself," he said quietly, his eyes going back to the glass and Beth beyond it.

He knew Carol wanted to ask him more but she didn't. She knew he wouldn't answer. And maybe she didn't need him to. Maybe she already knew. If she did, he wished she would tell him because he was feeling kind of lost as to what was happening between him and Beth. He just knew that he always wanted to be around her. He had to be. He had to keep her safe. He had to make things right though Beth had never told him he had to do anything like that. She didn't blame him for her getting taken and he wished she would because he deserved it. She had to blame him because he sure as hell blamed himself for it.

And then, when Tyreese had come to relieve him, he had gone inside and he hadn't even thought about it. He had just gone to where Beth was sleeping on the floor behind the counter and knew he would be sleeping next to her. She woke and didn't ask him what he was doing. She just moved to make more room for him and he knew that, with that gesture, she wanted him to sleep beside her, too.

He honestly felt a little disappointed that he woke up and her head wasn't on his chest but outside, she had fallen into his arms and he decided that just was as good.

Not only did he always want to be around Beth but he couldn't seem to stop touching her in some little way when he was. And the really strange part to him – as if this all wasn't fucking strange enough – she seemed to like it when he touched her. She liked when he put his dirty hands on her and she would smile and blush and she seemed to want only more.

He didn't need the tweeker to tell him where to go. His tracks were easier to follow in these woods that a damn herd of buffalo and as they got closer, Daryl signaled to them. They all crouched down behind a few fallen logs and they could hear the annoying laughter of the others in his camp. Daryl listened and it seemed as if the tweeker was telling the truth. He could only hear two distinctive voices.

Daryl held up two fingers to Rick, who nodded his head and made a circle with his own, what he wanted being understood by Daryl without words. He got up and with his crossbow, he hurried through the trees silently to the other side of the camp. He positioned himself and crouched himself down, not that he expected those other two able to sense him. He saw Rick enter the camp with the first tweeker, bound and bleeding, and his friends leapt to their feet. Only one was armed as far as Daryl could see. Carl had seen it, too, and had his gun aimed on that one.

"We got men in these woods," Rick told them. "You're surrounded and you don't stand a chance in hell if you're thinkin' you do."

Daryl aimed his bow, just waiting for one of those three to twitch.

It wasn't as if he wanted to kill anyone. They had a rule. Don't kill the living – unless the living gave them a damn good reason to. And that tweeker, basically making the suggestion to Beth that she come back to camp where they could all gangbang her was more than enough of a reason in Daryl's mind. In Rick's, too. He knew how the man thought because he thought the same way. They had to take care of these three. They may not look like much but every person outside of their group was a threat and they had to be taken care of.

He just had to wait for Rick to give him the signal.

…

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><p>They stopped at the grocery store on the way back and grabbed a few more things and as they neared the gas station, he saw that Beth wasn't inside. Instead, she was sitting on the steps of the front porch, clearly waiting. As he came down the road, she saw him immediately and when she did, she rushed to her feet and came practically running to him, rushing right past Carl and Rick, who both glanced back to see that Beth had thrown her arms around his neck.<p>

Daryl wasn't too sure what to do for a moment. But then he reminded himself that Beth was always hugging him lately and she seemed to like his hugs in return – though they weren't much of a hug – and even after whatever had happened in that hospital with the guards touching her, she seemed to actually want him to touch her. And with telling himself that, he lifted his arm and put it around her. Beth tightened her arms around him and didn't seem ready to let go anytime soon.

"Are you okay?" She then asked.

That was a question he still wasn't entirely used to people asking him and he took a moment. He cleared his throat and nodded. "Yeah," he answered her in a soft voice. "You?"

"You came back," she whispered and he frowned.

"You think I wouldn'?" He asked and she shook her head against his chest.

She didn't say anything else so he didn't say anything either. He looked up at the gas station for a moment, saw that everyone was inside – Rick probably avoiding the questions they were asking though they didn't really need to ask because they all knew what had happened out in those woods.

He waited for Beth to ask but she didn't. He wondered if he should just tell her but he didn't want to say the words to her. Maybe if he did, maybe if he told her what he had done, she wouldn't hug him anymore and he gotten used to Beth Greene hugs. He had gotten used to her always being there, right next to him. He knew she was too good for this world and she should be giving her hugs to someone who was just as good but he couldn't push her away.

Beth pulled her head back and tilted it up, looking at him. She didn't say anything and Daryl looked down into her eyes, wondering if she would; wondering if he would lie if she did.

But she didn't ask anything about that man or what had happened in the woods.

Instead, she asked, "Do you want something to eat?"

He shook his head. "Not that hungry."

"You haven't eaten since last night," she pointed out to him. "You need to eat something."

"Feel like huntin'," he said, looking up towards the sky. "Probably gonna rain again later. Wanna get somethin' before it hits."

She nodded and took a step back, her arms falling away from him and down to her sides.

He didn't ask her to come and she didn't ask if she could come with him. They both just began walking without discussing it. Instead of going into the woods behind the gas station, they crossed the gravel road and slipped within the trees on that side. Daryl stopped a moment and looked around, trying to catch the trail of something.

He wasn't necessarily searching for anything in particular. He just had to hunt. It had always helped him clear his head. Being out in the woods, just him and no one else, the fresh air, the smell of the dirt, the familiar comfort the crossbow in his hands brought him. He looked to Beth standing beside him, silent and not making a sound, not wanting to disrupt his concentration. He wasn't by himself now but he found himself not minding – not in the least. Maybe it would have bothered him if it had been someone else but this was Beth. He realized that when he had gone into the woods with Rick and Carl, that had been the longest they had been apart since they had gotten her back from that hospital.

He reached a hand to her elbow and she instantly jerked her head, looking at him. He cocked his head to the side and she nodded, following as he began following the trail of what looked like a raccoon.

They walked side by side, Beth's steps as quiet as his own, going deeper and deeper into the woods, further away from the station and the group. He knew he shouldn't venture them too far. It smelled like rain and he didn't want them to get caught out in it. Getting sick was the last thing any of them needed and yet, he didn't stop to turn them around. Being out in the woods, just him and Beth, it was really the only place he wanted to be, he realized.

When they had escaped the prison together, he had cursed everything – especially her. Out of everyone he could have escaped with, it had to be her – the weakest member, the one who barely could defend herself. But then, as she desperately tried to search for other survivors, and he wished she would just accept that everyone else was probably dead, he looked at her and knew that he hadn't been able to save the others but he could save her. He could keep her safe and alive and they may not have talked that much before this but she was a part of his family and he had to protect her.

In the end, he had done a shit job of that but being with her again, being in the woods, it felt like maybe, he was getting another chance to prove to himself and to her that he could.

"Did you kill them?" She asked suddenly, her voice quiet but it had been so unexpected, it was as loud as any gunshot.

Daryl was quiet for a moment and he wanted to be angry at her for asking because she knew what he had done. He didn't want to say it and let her know what kind of man he was. They both already knew without the words who he was.

"Yeah," he answered and didn't look at her, pretending to be concentrating on the trail.

She nodded and he waited for her to say something but she didn't say anything. They continued walking and Daryl dared his head to turn in her direction. She was looking ahead and seemed to be deep in thought. Daryl wanted to know what she was thinking but at the same time, he didn't really want to know.

"At night, when I was locked in my room, I would lie there in my bed and think of you," she said quietly. "I kept hoping you would come and that you would kill everyone there." She turned her head to look at him and he was staring at her. They both stopped walking. "I knew you would do anything to get me out of there."

He nodded, finding no argument in that.

"I've killed people, too, Daryl," she looked up at him. "In the hospital, when I was getting out. It doesn't make you a killer. The world now, it's just a new world and we're all doing what we have to do to survive it."

He stared at her and his throat felt too thick and dry to say anything to her in response.

She took a step towards him and her hand rested on his arm. "You're not a killer, Daryl," she told him in a soft voice with her big eyes and Daryl stared down at her.

His hand lifted to her cheek. It always seemed to move on its own accord and it seemed to always go to her cheek; to that scar. She said she had woken up in the hospital with it and he wondered how she had gotten it; who in the hospital had given it to her. Had they hit her when they tried to get her in the car? Every time he looked at that scar, he felt his blood begin to boil a few degrees hotter, churning with a growing anger. Anger mostly at himself. This scar and all of her others were his fault.

As if she could read his mind, her hand moved from his arm to his own cheek and their eyes locked together. "You're someone who would do anything to keep me safe."

Beth stared at him and he stared at her and he didn't know what he was supposed to do. He felt like he should do something or say something but he had gone completely blank inside. A pulling in his stomach told him what he wanted to do but he couldn't. _Too good for this world, _he repeated to himself and definitely too good for a redneck animal like him. He shouldn't even let the idea fester in his mind.

But then Beth took another step towards him, the space between them getting smaller and smaller and he felt his body burn.

Maybe it had been leading to this for a long time now. Since the night on the porch with the jars of moonshine and talking about their lives. Since she helped him burn his past down and he began to teach her how to hunt and track and he carried her on his back and they held hands and he tried to tell her that she had changed everything for him but could only grunt and she had said _oh_. Maybe it was all leading to this and if she hadn't gotten taken, it just would have happened sooner between them.

He didn't stop her as she raised herself on her toes, didn't stop her as she moved her face closer, and he didn't stop her when she pressed her lips to his.

He didn't stop any of it and when he felt her soft lips, he lifted a hand to the back of her head, fingers tangling in her hair, and he kissed her back. She let out a soft moan – as if she hadn't been expecting him to react – and then he felt her sink against him, her arms slowly circling around his shoulders as he pushed her back, his lips harder against hers. There was a tree behind her and he blindly guided her to it, pressing her back against it, his lips never removing themselves from hers. Now that he had tasted her, something was ripped open inside of his chest and he couldn't stop.

They had to stop though and it was only so both of them could breathe again, both of their chests heaving up and down as they gasped for air. He remained leaning into her, keeping her pressed against the tree, and her eyes fluttered open, her chin tilting up to look at him.

He didn't know what to say. What was the right thing to say in this situation? He waited for her to say something instead but she was just as quiet as him.

He heard a shuffling somewhere behind them, a familiar snarling, and he turned, seeing a walker coming their way. He lifted his crossbow and fired, easily taking it out, before looking back at her. Her cheeks were flushed and her lips were slightly swollen from the kisses and he noticed a faint red burn mark on her chin and upper lip from his facial hair.

Beth smiled, then, and it was a small smile but it flooded her eyes and it was a Beth Greene smile. He almost smiled at the sight of it but he didn't. He kept staring at her and he hesitated a moment before he lifted his hand to her cheek, thumb on her scar as always.

He finally spoke. "You only kissin' me to thank me for what I did today?" He asked.

Her smile remained, small and faint, and she shook her head. "You know that's not why."

He stared at her for another passing minute, staring into her eyes. "Oh," he said.

She laughed softly and he let the corners of his mouth twitch in a smile before she lifted herself on her toes and kissed him once more – soft and short. She pulled back and settled herself on her feet, her eyes never moving from him. And again, he didn't know what to do.

He cleared his throat. "We should head back," he said. "Rain's gettin' closer."

She nodded and he took a step back from her so she was no longer pinned against the tree. They began walking back, side by side, his crossbow in his hands as always, and she hummed a soft song he didn't recognize between her pursed, slightly upturned, lips.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	8. Chapter 8

**I seriously cannot believe the response I am getting for this story and I cannot thank all of you enough for the reviews, follows and favorites! It is just blowing me away. Thank you!**

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Eight.**

"Is this alright?" She asked him softly.

He looked at her and he didn't say anything but he nodded his head slightly. She smiled a little, her cheeks feeling warm, and slowly, she laid down, putting her head on his chest. She felt him tense beside her and with her head resting there, she could tell he was holding his breath. He was extremely uncomfortable and she didn't want him to be with her.

Moving slowly, she moved her head from his chest and settled it next to him. He turned his head and looked at her and she gave him a small smile to show him that it was alright. His frown was deep but he didn't say anything and she wasn't nearly as good at reading him as he was able to read her.

She couldn't believe that she had kissed him. She had been wanting to but she had never expected to. She had killed walkers and people and had lived through both of them terrorizing her but when it came to Daryl Dixon, she felt as if she had no courage and she just kind of expected to always be caught in this weird limbo with him with no steps being made forward or backwards. She never expected him to ever be interested in more.

But she had been waiting for him when he got back and she saw the way he looked at her. He was waiting for her to judge him for what he had done in those woods. He was waiting for her to pull away, disgusted and afraid of him. And suddenly, just like that, she knew that she had to show him because he would never believe her if she just told him.

And so she had kissed him and not only that but he had actually kissed her back.

The rain had come as he had predicted and it was another night they weren't able to sleep outside in their tent and after they ate dinner, Michonne took first watch and Beth and Daryl were able to settle in their space on the floor behind the counter.

They laid there quietly and Beth didn't feel the need to fill it with chatter. It was a comfortable silence, one that had developed between them once they had become accustomed to and more comfortable with one another. Lately, most of the time, she didn't feel like talking anyway.

She wondered how it would be for them now. Would he kiss her again? What if she did? Would he want her to? She knew she could never kiss him in front of others. Daryl would never be comfortable with the others knowing – if there was even anything to know. She knew they weren't going to be the next Maggie and Glenn and she had no desire to be. But she didn't know how Daryl wanted them to be and she didn't know if she wanted to breech the topic.

"You can put your head back," he said gruffly.

She looked at him for a moment and he watched her. She then smiled faintly and moved her head back to his chest. This time around, he was still a little stiff but at least he was breathing. She felt her eyes drifting closed as they fell quiet again.

She could hear the quiet chatter of the group on the other side of the counter as they got ready to go to sleep for the night, talks of what they would do the next day, asking Rick how long they would be staying there and if they were really going to head to Washington. Beth nestled a little closer to him and slowly, she took her arm and draped it across his stomach. Daryl tensed for just a second before he relaxed again.

For the first time since she had gotten out of the hospital and had been back with the group, lying here with Daryl with her head on his chest, feeling his arm slowly come around her lower back, she felt as if she was finally home.

"I don't want to go to Washington," she said softly but not too soft where he wouldn't hear.

Daryl grunted and didn't reply and she bit on her lower lip, sorry she had mentioned it. She knew he didn't believe in the cure but she knew that if that was where Rick decided to go, Daryl would back him up. And if Daryl was going to Washington, she knew she was going too. She couldn't imagine going anywhere without Daryl anymore.

Maybe it had always been like that. After the fall of the farm, there were ten of them and they were all forged together, an unspoken bond all shared between them and where one went, they all went. They were a family. Or, at least she had thought that. Whether she went to Washington or not, Daryl would be the only one to notice and care. She wasn't being self-pitying. It was the truth and she knew that now. She no longer wore rose-tinted glasses to the world around her. In the grander scheme of things with this group, she mattered very little and she always would.

She felt fingers in her hair – the end strands of her ponytail – and she smiled to herself. His touch was light, hesitant, as if he wasn't sure whether or not he should be touching her at all. She wanted to tell him that he definitely could but she didn't want to bring attention to it. If she did, he would probably pull his hand away and stop touching her altogether.

His heart was beating strong and steady in her ear and it was better than any lullaby as she felt it begin to lull her away to sleep.

"I don't wanna go either," he then said, softly, suddenly, and her eyes ripped open.

She turned her head so she could look at his face in the darkness. His eyes were set on the ceiling above their heads and his fingers had stopped playing with her hair. She waited as if she expected him to say more but she wasn't surprised when he didn't. She shifted her head down again and closed her eyes, sleep, once again, ready to claim her.

She suddenly imagined her and Daryl splitting off from the group, setting off on their own, just the two of them. She knew it would never happen, of course, but it was a lovely thought. One that made her smile faintly to herself as she allowed the dream to take over.

The two of them in the woods, hunting and making their camps and occasionally finding a house to take shelter in for a few days. Just the two of them, sometimes talking and sometimes not. It wouldn't seem like much but being with him like that, to her, it would be everything. It was all she really wanted.

She awoke a few hours later to find that Daryl was gone. She didn't panic though. She knew he was close. It was almost as if she could sense him and she knew he had just taken over for Michonne on watch.

She laid there for a moment, looking at the empty space where he had been a little bit ago. She smiled faintly when she realized he had made sure she was covered with the blanket when he left. People would probably wonder about her and Daryl if they ever found out – if there was something to find out – but if they knew how sweet and caring he could be without even thinking about it, there would be no mystery at all.

She reached into her pack, finding what she needed, and then stood up, wrapping the blanket around her shoulders. Everyone was sleeping – the room filled with quiet snores and deep breaths and the occasional murmur. And through the front windows, she saw Daryl sitting on the porch, on watch, smoking a cigarette.

She stepped quietly so not to disturb anyone, stepping over Rick carefully as he slept right near the door, and she stepped outside into the cold night. Daryl looked over his shoulder to see her but he didn't look surprised that she was there. She gave him a faint smile and came to sit down beside him.

"You need sleep," he said, his voice rough from not having used it for a few hours and his breath appeared in front of him as he talked.

She shook her head. "I'm alright. How is it?"

"Quiet." He took a last drag of his cigarette and then tossed it away, turning his head and exhaling the smoke away from her before looking back at her.

"I brought us something," she then informed him and pulled out a single Twinkie. "One of the last ones," she then smiled, carefully pulling the plastic wrapping away.

"What the hell? We brought back six boxes," Daryl frowned.

She laughed softly. "Carl's a teenage boy. I think he ate four today."

Daryl muttered something under his breath that she didn't catch but it made her laugh softly nonetheless. She handed him the Twinkie and watched as he carefully tore it in two, handing her one of the halves.

"Thank you," she said softly and gave him a smile.

Daryl looked at her for a moment before nodding his head and taking a bite, he turned his head and focused, once again, ahead of them. Beth sat quietly, eating her treat and not trying to make conversation. She had found that sometimes, she really just loved sitting with him and talking wasn't always necessary between them.

He was right. The night was quiet. Very quiet. She knew it sometimes made him nervous when it was like this. Uncomfortable. When it was quiet like this, he was half-expecting something to happen. She, on the other hand, loved it. When it was quiet like this, she could sometimes fool herself into thinking that the world hadn't gone to hell.

From the corner of her eye, she saw him suddenly reach out for her and she stilled as his thumb brushed across the corner of her mouth, wiping away a drop of the crème she had clinging there. She gave him a small, warm smile and watched as he stuck the side of his thumb between his lips, sucking it clean.

"I wish we could stay here," she then admitted.

"Nothing much here to stay for," he shrugged.

"We could make it something though. The prison wasn't much but we made it a home."

Daryl shrugged again. "Got too comfortable there and looked what happened."

Beth wasn't going to be discouraged though. "I don't know what it is but… I love it here." He turned his head to look at her and she turned her head to look at him. He didn't say anything and his face remained blank but his eyes were intently set on her. "There's room enough for all of us here. And I saw some seeds in the store. I was thinking, when the weather starts to get a little warmer…" she trailed off then, feeling silly all of a sudden.

He was quiet for a moment. "What about Maggie?" He then asked.

"What about her?" She asked before she could stop herself. She sighed and looked down to her thighs, tightening the blanket around her shoulders. "I didn't mean that," she whispered, shaking her head.

"Yes, you did, and you should," he said. "Maggie made her feelin' on the matter pretty obvious when she ran off without stickin' around to know either way."

Beth tried to swallow, her throat feeling too thick. "You were the only one who cared, Daryl. We both know that."

He didn't say anything.

"Back at the farm, when I… when I slit my wrist… ever since then, though she never said it, I knew Maggie saw me as weak. I knew she thought I wouldn't make it far in this world." She could feel Daryl looking at her but her eyes were set on her thighs and she kept them focused there. "When you told her about me, she probably thought I was already dead."

Daryl still didn't say anything. Instead, he reached over and took her left hand. He pulled it between them and holding onto it, his thumb worked its way past all of her bracelets. She felt herself holding her breath as his thumb began rubbing circles over her scar.

"No one knows shit 'bout you, Beth," he said softly and his words made the iciness she felt slowly disappear. There was that warmth again. That warmth she only got around him.

They fell quiet again and slowly, not sure how he would react, she moved a bit closer to him and rested her head down on his shoulder. He didn't tense and she almost smiled. Progress.

"If he was here, what would your ol' man say about this?" He asked.

The question might have been sudden but it didn't surprise her in the least. It was no secret how much Daryl had respected Hershel. Those two had been in Rick's inner circle and then on the prison council together and back when Rick had had his breakdown after Lori's death, Daryl and Hershel had stepped up, becoming the leaders and Daryl often looking to the older man for advice and guidance as to what should be done.

Beth lifted her head and looked at him, he instantly turning his head to look at her.

"He knew how good of a man you are, Daryl," she told him in a quiet, yet strong, voice. "He knew you are fiercely protective of and loyal to those you care about. And now with him gone, looking down, he knows you keep me safe."

Daryl looked away from her at that; looked ahead. "I didn' keep you safe, Beth."

She reached a hand out towards him and gently grasping his chin, she forced his head to turn back towards her. "You're the only one who does," she said. "You need to stop blaming yourself for what happened, Daryl. It wasn't your fault. I was just… there. I was told they only took weak ones."

"You ain't weak," he frowned and she smiled a little.

"Not anymore. You trained me well," she said.

She wanted to kiss him then but she didn't know if she should. She wished she knew what he wanted; wished she was able to read him a little bit better. She could never tell with Daryl though. There was always this wall and sometimes, he pushed it down so she could see but most of the time, out of habit and survival instinct, he kept it always securely up.

She moved her face closer to his and he remained still, looking at her, obviously waiting to see what she was going to do but that was the problem. She didn't know and he wasn't giving her any signals. At the last moment, she decided not to kiss him. She gently, playfully, nudged his nose with hers and then pulled her face back, giving him a faint smile.

"Wait here," Daryl said, standing up and picking up his crossbow. "I'm gonna do a quick perimeter check," he said and Beth nodded, holding the blanket tight around her, cold again now that he had moved away. He looked at her, making sure she was staying put, and he then walked away, disappearing around the side of the building.

Beth remained on the porch, blowing out streams of air, watching her breath appear in the small clouds before fading away into the black night.

She did love it up here. It had been a lucky find. She liked that they were at a slight elevation, hidden from most in the woods. They didn't need Washington or anywhere else along the way. They could make this their home if they really wanted to. Beth was already imagining what they could do to make it a bit more secure. Maybe she could go tomorrow and get the packets of seeds and then try and find the best dirt for planting when the ground thawed a bit. Maybe Rick could help her – if he wanted to try his hand at farming again. He had had quite a knack for it at the prison.

She heard Daryl return, coming up the other side of the building, though his steps were quiet and no one else probably couldn't have heard. And she smiled when she saw him again as if she hadn't seen him in years. He looked at her and smiled a little, too, and returned to the porch, sitting down again next to her.

"Good?" She asked.

"Good," he nodded.

"Can I ask you a question?" She looked to him. Daryl nodded and looked at her, waiting, but now that he had given her permission, she felt stupid and silly and every bit her age. And yet, she had to know – just to know. "Have you and Carol… have you two ever…" she found herself unable to finish the question but Daryl didn't need her to.

He smirked a little, looking a bit amused. "No," he said. "Why do you ask that?"

Beth felt her cheeks flush. "I just… you two have a very close relationship and I guess I was just… I don't know," she then admitted, burning with embarrassment.

"Rick and I are pretty close. You gonna ask about us next?" Daryl smiled a bit wider.

She laughed a little but her embarrassment only rose. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked."

Daryl shrugged. "Don't care that you asked. And the answer is no. Carol and I are close but it's never been like that 'tween us. At least not on my end," he said and she nodded while finding herself breathing a little easier.

She didn't even know why it mattered if they had or not.

"What 'bout you. Have you?" He asked.

"With Carol?" Beth was able to joke and he smirked again. "Yes," she then nodded. "With Zach. That whole I don't know if I'm going to be alive tomorrow kind of thing," she explained and Daryl nodded in understanding. "And then-" she began to say but she abruptly cut herself off. She didn't know why she had just been about to say that to him.

Daryl caught it though. Of course he had. He stared at her. "And then?" He asked.

She quickly shook her head. "Nothing. Just Zach," she lied.

He kept looking at her, staring at her, his eyes slowly growing hard. And just like that, she knew he knew. He had figured it out and she saw his jaw – his entire body – tense.

"Daryl," she said his name. "It wasn't… it was just a few times."

He stood up then and she lowered her eyes from him, a hot burning wave of tears flooding her eyes. She had no idea why she had mentioned this at all. Talking about this, she should have known this would have come up. Somehow, someway, she would have said this. She should have stayed away from this topic altogether but it was too late. He knew now. Without her needing to say a single thing about the guards and what they had done to her, he knew.

She looked at Daryl. He was pacing, a caged animal who's anger was seeping off of him and swirling around them both, choking the air. She stood up but she didn't dare approach him.

"Daryl," she said his name but he didn't seem to hear. He was breathing heavily now and his hands were clenched into fists. "I'm sorry," she rushed out and that did it. Her words jolted him and his head jerked up to look at her.

He strode to her and she didn't know what he was going to do but she remained standing on the porch step, watching him. He came right up to her, his face mere inches from her and his hand went to the back of her neck, grasping her. His eyes flashed but she wasn't afraid.

"Don't _ever_ say that again, Beth," he practically growled.

He then pushed himself away from her and turned and stalked away. She wanted to call out his name but she didn't want to alert the others inside or what might be lurking in the woods. She didn't realize she had begun crying until the cold night air stung her wet cheeks. She watched him disappear, swallowed by the darkness, and she wanted to go after him but she knew that she was the last person he wanted around her right now.

She turned and hurried, staying quiet while she rushed back inside. She dropped down next to Rick and shook him slightly. The man's eyes instantly snapped open and when his eyes registered her kneeling beside him, she put a finger to her lips to signal he needed to be quiet.

"It's Daryl," she whispered to him.

Rick instantly sat up. "What happened?" He demanded, whispering back.

"We were talking outside and he stormed off down the road. I didn't follow him. I knew he wouldn't want me to but you… maybe you can see if he's alright," she said and wiped at her cheeks though Rick had already seen she was crying.

He stood up and Beth got back to her feet. He went out onto the porch and she followed.

He faced her and stared at her for a moment. "What happened?" He asked again.

Beth shook her head but answered nonetheless. "I let something slip… something about what happened to me in the hospital."

She didn't need to give Rick specifics either. He looked at her and just like Daryl had, he was able to know what had happened to her just from looking into her eyes. She lowered her eyes and wiped her cheeks again. She took a few deep breaths, getting herself steady, and then looked to him again.

"He was so angry. I don't think I've ever seen him that angry before," she whispered.

"Not at you though. I'll go get him," Rick nodded and pulled his gun from his holster as he stepped down to the gravel. He pointed in the right direction and looked back to Beth for confirmation and she nodded her head.

She didn't move as she watched Rick follow after Daryl until she couldn't see him anymore.

Alone again, she didn't return inside. She sat down on the porch and picked up the blanket lying there, returning it to around her shoulders. She hugged her legs and rested her chin on her knees and she squeezed her eyes shut as she felt more tears begin to form. She tried to breathe and tried to assure herself that Rick and Daryl would come back. Of course they would be back.

She just had no idea how things would be now between her and Daryl when he did come back.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	9. Chapter 9

**Wow, wow, wow. That's all I can say to the response I received for the last chapter. Thank you so, so much! **

**Just a quick note for this one: I probably love the Rick/Daryl friendship more than the Daryl/Beth relationship so I was actually far more nervous writing their conversation at the beginning of this chapter than I ever have been writing Daryl/Beth. **

**I am trying so hard to keep every character _in _character while writing this story and I'm a little unsure of Daryl in this particular update. **

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Nine.**

"I think you got it."

Daryl ignored him for a minute, bringing his knife down into the walker's head a few more times even though he had killed it after the first bolt he had shot at it. When he stopped, the walker was nothing more than crushed flesh and oozing black blood. He was panting from the exertion and he slowly pulled himself to his feet. He wiped the blade on his thigh before jamming it onto the sheath hanging off his hip.

He turned towards him, not surprised that he had followed after him. Rick didn't say anything so he didn't say anything, either. He picked up his crossbow and ripped the bolt from the walker's head, bending down to load the weapon again.

"Beth send you?" Daryl asked, standing straight, looking at him.

"Yeah, she's worried about you and she's really upset. You should go back and talk to her," Rick said.

"No," he answered with a shake of his head.

"No?" Rick raised his eyebrows.

"Nothin' to talk about," Daryl shrugged. "I let her get taken, let those fuckers beat and rape her. What do we have to talk about?"

Rick exhaled a heavy breath. "You _let_?" He questioned.

Daryl ignored him and looked around, the rain having passed and the moon out now, providing light for them to see by. He had walked down the gravel road, down the incline back to the main road they had first turned off of. He had walked until he found one walker and then another and another. It had been easy for Rick to find him. He just had to follow the walker bodies strewn about like haphazard breadcrumbs.

"That's right," Daryl nodded. "I'm the one who told her to run to the road. Told her I'd meet her there."

And just saying that out loud, he instantly thought back to that night. Sitting with her in the kitchen, surrounded by the candles and eating jelly with a spoon because she had been grossed out when he had used his fingers, looking at her and the way she smiled so softly at him. He had wanted to tell her so many things but he had never been good with words – especially words towards a woman. He hadn't been able to say anything at all except a few grunts and mumbles and yet, she had looked at him as if she understand perfectly. _Oh_.

And then the walkers came and he could still hear her last words to him perfectly.

_I'm not gonna leave you!_

Daryl sighed heavily and slinging his crossbow onto his shoulder, he began walking down the road, further from the gravel road that led back up towards the gas station and Beth. Rick didn't turn back either. He followed after Daryl and came up to walk beside him.

"You always do this, man," Rick shook his head.

"What do I do?" Daryl frowned, glancing at him before back straight ahead.

He was on the lookout for walkers, as always, but for once, he was hoping some showed up. He hadn't nearly killed enough and his anger was still bubbling in his blood. He needed to kill something; he needed to get rid of this anger because he knew he couldn't return to the others, couldn't return to Beth, like this.

Beth. Did he even want to return to see her again? How could he even look at her again, now that he knew? He had known that something had happened to her more than the beatings but he hadn't allowed himself to really think about it, knowing he wouldn't be able to handle it once he knew. And that was definitely true. As soon as Beth told him, he had gone completely red and black and he had to get away from her because what he needed to do, he didn't want her to see.

"You always act like everything's your fault," Rick said.

Daryl snorted. "Are _you_ really tellin' me that?"

Rick seemed to ignore the question. "What happened to Beth wasn't your fault. Wasn't her fault either."

Daryl stopped suddenly and turned towards him with a frown. "Who's sayin' it's her fault?"

"The way you stormed off, she's probably thinkin' you are," he said.

Daryl set his jaw and glared at him, his hands tightening around the strap of the bow. "It ain't her fault and I would never think that. This blame's wit' me."

"No, Daryl. It's not on you."

Daryl stared at him. Rick had said those words to him before but he hadn't really believed them then any more than he believed them now. Of course this was on him. The prison fell and he had had one job for himself. Keep Beth alive. And by keeping her alive, that also meant keeping her safe. He could hardly stand to see the scar on her cheek now, knowing that if he hadn't told her to run ahead, she never would have gotten it. And now, he didn't know if he could look at her without thinking about what else she had been through.

He didn't say anything and instead, he turned and began walking again, Rick at his side.

"You don't have to babysit me," he all but snarled, using Beth's words.

Rick shrugged. "Just walkin'," he said. "It's a nice night."

Daryl almost snorted but he remained silent and Rick, thankfully, was quiet, too. Daryl knew he was walking further and further away without making a move to turn back around but he couldn't stop. He had to keep moving forward because he couldn't go back yet.

"She said she was sorry," Daryl bit out, surprising both him and Rick that he had actually started talking again. "She was apologizin' like it was her fault."

"Yeah," Rick said softly. "Rape victims tend to do that sometimes."

_Victims._ Daryl had never hated a word more. That wasn't Beth. She was one of the strongest people he knew – whether she or anyone else believed it.

And what happened to her didn't change that.

They heard snarls and saw three walkers on the other side of a wired fence running along the road. Daryl looked at Rick, who stopped walking and nodded his head slightly. Daryl lifted his crossbow, aiming it, and fired the bolt into one of the walker's heads. He then hopped himself over the fence, stabbing the other two in the head. He stayed there for a moment, breathing a little heavier, staring down at the three bodies. He bent and took his bolt back and he closed his eyes for a moment, not ready to move.

When he felt like his heart was maybe beating at a somewhat regular beat again, he turned to see Rick still standing in the road, waiting for him. They looked at one another for a moment and Daryl then armed the bolt into the crossbow again and hopped the fence back.

They stood there, neither talking, though Daryl knew Rick wanted to say something. He looked at him, waiting, wondering what he could say because right now, Daryl really didn't want to hear anything. He was trying his hardest to not even think right now.

_I'm not gonna leave you!_

He exhaled a deep breath and cast his eyes down to the road.

"I don't know what happened to you two out there and I'm not askin'," Rick said. "But it's pretty obvious to me and everyone else that something _did_ happen." Daryl lifted his eyes to look at him. "All I'm sayin' is, don't pull away from her because of this."

"I wasn't plannin' on doin' that. I just needed a few minutes," Daryl frowned.

Rick nodded and continued looking at him for a few minutes without saying anything. He then said, "You're allowed to be angry over this but you should probably remember this. Beth was the one raped. Not you."

Daryl's grip tightened on the crossbow and he slowly nodded his head. "I know."

They didn't exchange any more words. They both turned and began walking back in the direction of the gravel road and the gas station. The night was quiet and cold, the moon washing everything out in a pale light.

"Beth likes it here," Daryl said as they slowly climbed up the incline of the road.

Rick nodded. "Carl said something similar like that today. Maybe it'd be a good place for a little while longer."

"What about Washington? We still plannin' on goin'?"

"Washington's bullshit," Rick said bluntly and Daryl felt his lips almost twitching at that. "Here's not perfect but could you imagine all of the walkers and problems we would run into the closer we got? I'm not putting my son and daughter in the middle of that."

Daryl nodded and pursed his dry lips together, wetting them. "What 'bout Glenn and Maggie?" He asked though like Beth, at this time, he really didn't care all that much but if there was anything he knew, it was family was family.

"Don't know," Rick admitted. "Maybe we'll see them again. Maybe we won't. Those that are here with us, now, they're the ones we have to worry about."

As they came around the bend in the road and drew nearer to the gas station, Daryl saw that Beth was no longer on the front porch – not that he expected her to wait for him. He had heard what happened to her and made it all about him. He wouldn't have waited for his stupid ass either.

Tyreese was on watch and he came down the steps when he saw them approach. His eyes lingered on Daryl and then went to Rick.

"Everything good?" He asked.

"Yeah, we were just scoutin' back down the road," Rick said. "Everything good here?"

"Quiet," Tyreese nodded.

"I was thinkin' Daryl could go further up tomorrow and see what else there is up the road. Thinkin' he take you and Miconne with him," Rick said, looking to both of them.

"Sounds good," Tyreese agreed and Daryl nodded without saying anything.

In the gas station, Rick returned to his spot on the floor by Carl and Judith and Daryl looked at the counter and hesitated for only a moment before he went to it. Beth was lying there on her side, sleeping. She didn't stir as he set his crossbow down near her head and then slowly lowered himself on the floor next to her. He watched her for a moment, hesitating again. He wasn't the sort who knew what to do when it came to things like this. He had never been that comfortable around females, to be honest, but this was Beth and besides Carol, Beth was really the only one he felt like he could breathe around.

He laid down behind her and without giving it thought, he curved his body around hers.

Through her sleep, as if she could sense him, Beth murmured something and adjusted her body, fitting her back more against his chest. Daryl slowly brought his arm over her hip and wrapped it loosely around her middle, holding her not too tightly but he made sure he held her securely. Nothing could hurt her as long as he kept holding onto her. And he had learned his lesson. He wasn't planning on letting go of her anytime soon and he would never tell her again to run ahead.

"Daryl?" Beth murmured then, still more asleep than awake.

"Yeah," he said in his lowered voice. "It's me."

She sighed softly, contently, then and nestled herself further back into his arms. Daryl was quiet and he knew he should get some sleep but his mind was racing, keeping him awake.

He leaned into her then, his lips skimming across her ear. "I ain't never had a stuffed animal," he whispered to her and he didn't need to look at her face to know she was smiling. Her hand found his and she linked their fingers together, squeezing it tight.

…

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><p>"We don't have to go in," Beth told him as they came across the cabin in the woods, it looking much like the moonshine house he had brought them to that one day.<p>

"Nah, it's alright," he shook his head and looked at her. "'Sides, might be some useful things inside," he said. "And if not, we'll just burn it down."

That made her smile and he smirked a little before turning back towards the cabin. After they had all gotten up and ate some breakfast that morning, as Rick had planned, he told Daryl, Michonne and Tyreese to go out and see if they could find anything the further up the road went. And since Daryl was going, they all knew Beth would be going too.

Daryl and Beth approached the front of the house as Michonne and Tyreese took either side, all on high alert, and Beth and Daryl fell into their normal routine – Daryl pounding on the door and Beth swinging it open. There were no walkers inside after doing a quick sweep of the interior and the four of them all entered once it was found to be safe.

"Looks like it's been abandoned for a long time," Beth noted.

"Most huntin' cabins 'round here look like this," Daryl said. "Only used a few times out of the year and most people don't fill them with stuff. But you never know."

Daryl began searching the one closet in hopes of finding any weapons left behind while Tyreese checked the cabinets and Beth looked through the bedroom while Michonne had returned outside, keeping watch. On the top shelf of the closet, Daryl found a dull hatchet that could easily be sharpened and a few dusty wool blankets. He turned to see that Tyreese hadn't had much luck in the kitchen except for a box of matches. He went into the bedroom to see Beth on her stomach, on the floor, her arm stretched beneath the bed. Without a word, Daryl got down on the other side of the bed and reached underneath it, easily reaching the box she couldn't and yanking it out.

She came around the bed to kneel beside him and he took his knife, using it on the heavy lock. When he cracked it open and flipped the top back, he let out a low whistle and Beth gasped when they saw what was inside.

"What did you find?" Tyreese asked, joining them in the room. He peered over the bed to see them kneeling on the floor, a box filled with money open in front of them.

"It's kind of weird, isn't it?" Beth asked. "It means absolutely nothing anymore but still seeing money, for a moment, it's like we all forget."

"Might be good for starting fires," Tyreese suggested and Daryl nodded in agreement. He looked to Beth and she took off her pack, opening it and helping him put the stacks of bills inside. "Found this for you, Beth. Heard you complaining about your ears," he said and tossed her a bright orange hat.

"Thank you," she smiled and instantly yanked it down on her head. She looked to Daryl and nudged him gently with her elbow in his side. "Now, there's no way you can lose me."

"Wasn't plannin' on losin' you," he grunted and after shoving the blankets in as well, he stood up, the box empty now. Beth stood up as well, slipping her pack back onto her back. "Anything else?" He looked to Tyreese.

He shook his head. "You weren't kidding when you said hunters don't keep much here."

"Might have gotten cleared out a long time ago," Daryl said and then looked out the window before back to both Tyreese and Beth. "We'll keep headin' up the road. I can tell there's a lot of game out in these woods. Might be a few more cabins."

The four left the cabin and set off again, heading further up the road. Daryl led the way and he had told Beth in few words that she was going to be walking by him. She didn't argue and stayed beside him. He had handed her the hatchet to hold and she inspected it now, her thumb running over the dull blade.

"Will you show me how to sharpen it when we get back?" She asked him. He nodded and she smiled as if she wasn't sure he would agree. "It's cute," she went back to looking at it.

"It's a hatchet, Beth. It ain't cute," he frowned but she just smiled up at him.

They came upon another hunting cabin but like the first, there wasn't much inside. A few more blankets and cans of beans in the cabinet and a bottle of aspirin in the bathroom. They took everything, loading it into Beth and Tyreese's packs, before moving on. They veered from the road now and headed into the woods.

They stopped after a while so Beth could go to the bathroom behind a clumping of bushes a bit away, trying to get a bit of privacy, and Daryl kept guard as Tyreese and Michonne rested. They would start to head back soon, pick it up again tomorrow. He agreed with Rick. It was best to know everything that was around them. It was the only way to make staying here – if Rick was going to let them stay – work.

They had hardly seen any walkers. Just the random one every once in a while and it was easily dispatched. He remembered being at the quarry outside of Atlanta. That's why it had worked for a while. They were at an elevation and walkers were shit at climbing uphill. Like any animal though, starvation drove them to follow the food and though they weren't good at it, that didn't stop them from attempting to climb. He knew no place – not even this little mountain – would be safe forever but for now, it was as good a place as any.

Beth came out from the bushes now and gave him a faint smile when she saw him standing nearby, crossbow looking relaxed in his arms but they both knew he would be ready to fire it within a second if need be. He looked at her and he couldn't help but smile a little, looking at her wearing her yellow scarf and her bright orange hat. She looked silly and cute and all sorts of other things he never thought of when looking at a girl.

"What?" She asked, seeing him looking at her, and she smiled a little, shyly and unsure.

He shrugged and shook his head. "We should start headin' back," he said and she nodded.

Arriving back at the gas station, they saw that the others had been working on alarms that day, stringing cans together to make noise if bumped into and had strung them around their perimeter. Taking their packs, Beth and Tyreese showed them what they had found and Daryl and Rick stepped outside so they could speak in private with one another.

"Thinkin' me and Beth will go huntin' in a little bit," Daryl said. Rick nodded. "Might be gone for a couple of days. I saw plenty of tracks today when we were walkin'. Could be a lot of things out there that could get us through the next few weeks."

Rick nodded again. "Sounds good." He looked at him for a moment. "I'm thinkin' we stay here for as long as we can. What do you think?"

Daryl shrugged. "We could make it work. Beth mentioned seein' seeds in the store. When the ground gets a little softer…" he trailed off and Rick nodded, falling deep into thought.

Inside, Rick told the others Daryl's plan and Carol put together a pack of provisions that would last them a few days, handing it to Beth.

"Be careful," she told the girl and kissed her on the cheek, Beth unable to hide her surprise.

Daryl made sure he had his knives and plenty of bolts and he made sure Beth had her knife and her hatchet, telling her they would sharpen it along the way, and after Rick telling him to watch out for both himself and Beth, they set off, leaving the safety of the gas station and stepping into the woods. The sun was getting lower in the sky and Daryl knew they would have to set camp up soon but he wanted to get in a few miles before they settled in somewhere for the night.

Beth was quiet, walking beside him, and he didn't begin a conversation either. And then, as if it had just occurred to him, he realized that it was just going to be him and Beth in the woods for the next couple of days. Just them – like it used to be. His throat suddenly went dry and he felt his heart speed up beating in his chest. Just the two of them since she had kissed him and he had kissed back and they would be able to kiss again without worrying about someone stumbling upon them and seeing.

"If you keep looking at me, you must not be doing much tracking," Beth suddenly said and his eyes jerked to her, seeing her smiling faintly and teasingly at him.

"Just thinkin'," he shrugged, looking back ahead.

"Mmmmmm," Beth said but said nothing else. She was quiet for a few minutes. "You don't have to keep watching me, waiting for me to break," she then told him.

"I ain't expectin' you to," he said, looking back at her.

"When it happened… it was something that happened when I was biding my time," she began to explain and Daryl felt the need to stop listening while at the same time, wanting to hear everything. "I was planning my escape and it was something I couldn't rush. I had to be smart about it and unfortunately… that happened while I was trying to act like I was going to be staying there forever."

Daryl reluctantly nodded his head. "Makes sense," he mumbled.

Beth reached out and put a hand on his arm. "Hey," she said softly and he stopped walking, looking to her. "It's okay, Daryl," she looked up at him.

"What's okay?" He felt his mouth sliding into a frown.

"You kissed me before you knew…"

He blinked at her, thinking he knew where she was going with that but not believing that she would actually think that. "And what does knowin' have anything to do with me kissin' you?" He asked, practically demanded.

He watched her cheeks flush and she lowered her eyes, not able to look at him anymore.

"I should have told you sooner and I shouldn't have kissed you before I did. I imagine most men probably wouldn't like it…" she trailed off again and she turned her head, desperate to look at anything but him.

Daryl stared at her, trying to keep his anger in check. "You know a lot of men like me?"

That got her looking at him again. "I don't know anyone like you," she said softly.

"Then stop makin' assumptions 'bout what I'm thinkin' or what I want," he frowned.

Beth visibly swallowed. "And what do you want?" She whispered, looking at him and nowhere else but him. He didn't answer and he watched as the realization visibly washed into her eyes. Her body still seemed tense as if she still wasn't absolutely certain though. He just kept staring at her and didn't say anything. "Oh," she then said, whispering still.

Oh. That damn word. It could get a reaction out of him faster than any other word he had ever heard. And just hearing her say it, hearing that she got it, his heart began to pound.

"Yeah," he confirmed with a nod of his head and then he stepped into her, hearing her gasp just as his hand went to the back of her head, cupping the curve of her neck.

He looked at her for just a moment to confirm that she wanted this and she looked up at him with her big eyes. She didn't protest. Instead, she leaned into him and that was all he needed her to do.

He leaned down and fused his lips to hers.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	10. Chapter 10

**Thank you so, so much as always for the response to the last chapter and I hope you like this one. It's probably one of my favorites in the entire story. **

**And also, just an announcement of sorts, I probably won't have an update this weekend but I will be back again on Monday. Enjoy Sunday's episode and let's keep our fingers crossed that it's as awesome as we're hoping!**

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Ten. **

He showed her how to set up the tent when they finally decided to stop for the night and she laughed softly because it was taking much longer than it probably should have but he never showed impatience or frustration with her.

"Damn, girl. Thought you were a farm girl," he grunted.

"That has absolutely nothing to do with being able to set up a tent," she quipped back to him and he smirked, shaking his head a little.

They didn't light a fire. Once the tent was finished being set up, they went inside and Daryl pulled up the flap, zipping them in for the night. Beth reached into the pack Carol had packed for them and pulled out a can of pear halves for them to share and a jar of peanut butter. They had no forks with them so they ate their dinner with their fingers. Daryl was quiet as always and that was okay with her because she felt like being quiet, too.

She handed him the can of pears for him to take the last one. Daryl didn't ask if she was sure. Anytime they were eating and there was one of something left, she always gave it to him. He took the can and scooped the last pear up, dropping it into his mouth before handing her back the can so she could drink the remaining juice.

She smiled, liking that they didn't have to talk. She liked that they still had their routines and being away from the group, back out in the woods on their own, they could just fall into them again. She liked that out of everyone left in the world, Daryl knew her the best.

Beth reached into her pack and pulled out the Twinkie that had been carefully packed away in there. "Last one," she said.

Daryl shook his head. "We should have hid a box from everyone else."

"We'll find more," she shrugged as she tore the Twinkie in half and gave him his portion. He shoved the whole thing in his mouth at once and she laughed softly. "You're not going to savor it?" She asked him as she took small nibbles from hers.

He shrugged. "We'll find more."

He took his own pack, pulling it closer to him, and Beth watched as he pulled out the extra bolts from the side pocket, inspecting each one closely. When they all appeared to pass his silent test, he packed them away carefully and then pulled out a stone. He looked at her and he didn't have to ask. She pulled the hatchet from her pack and handed it to him. She then watched as he began to scrape the blade against the stone.

"Wanna do it?" He asked.

She nodded eagerly and quickly finished the Twinkie before he passed the stone and hatchet to her. She could feel him watching her as she mirrored the actions she had watched him make and she seemed to be doing it right because he didn't correct her. The only sound in the tent was the blade against stone and she found it to be smoothing. The tent was small and they sat facing one another, legs crossed and knees touching.

After nearly ten minutes, his hand reached out, gently placing it over hers. She immediately stopped and watched as he picked up the hatchet, bringing the blade to the pad of his thumb. He didn't cut himself but he pressed it to his skin enough to draw a small trickle of blood.

"Sharp 'nough," he said with approval and she wasn't sure why but she smiled, proud.

"Can you show me how to use it tomorrow?" She asked him.

"Yeah," he nodded. "I'm thinkin' we might try to track a deer tomorrow. That'll give us plenty of meat for everyone. Rick said he and Carol were goin' to try and get the stove upstairs working. Might have a workin' kitchen again like back at the prison."

"Do you sometimes miss it? The prison?" She asked, pulling her knees to her chest and hugging them with her arms, looking at him.

He shrugged. "Sometimes. Try not to think about it though. Too good to be true."

She nodded and fell quiet, both lost to their own thoughts. Hers were of nothing but her dad. So much had happened since the fall of the prison but her dad had only died that summer. Just a few months ago. Sometimes, it seemed so much longer than that. She tried not to think of him because when she did, she thought of the katana against his throat and all of the things he never got to experience and she became so sad and angry all over again.

And dwelling on things, especially now, wasn't good for anyone.

When her eyes focused again, she saw that Daryl was looking at her and she knew he knew what she was thinking of. She did her best to give him a small smile.

"Your hair's getting long," she commented, reaching out and brushing some from his eye.

"Gettin' annoyin', too," he said, still watching her closely.

"You should let Carol cut it when we get back," she said.

"You don't like it like this?" He asked and Beth didn't mean to hesitate but she did and of course, he noticed it immediately. "Here, let's cut it now." He pulled his knife out.

"Daryl," she said and then laughed slightly, not entirely sure what else to do. "We can't cut your hair with a knife. It would be a disaster."

He shrugged. "Not enterin' any beauty contests anytime soon. 'Sides, how do you think people cut their hair 'fore scissors came 'round?"

"You're crazy," she shook her head, laughing still – quiet and light – and he looked at her, the corner of his mouth pulling up in a smile. "Thank you," she then said softly because she knew exactly what he was doing and it was working.

The darker thoughts had now passed from her mind and she looked at him, knowing that he had done his best to distract her and she felt her chest warm. She leaned forward and she couldn't help but press her lips to his in a short, soft kiss. It was still a little strange to think that she could kiss Daryl Dixon whenever she wanted; that Daryl Dixon wanted her.

She pulled away, sitting back again, and he looked at her, not saying anything. He was still holding his knife, looking contemplative, as if he was really considering cutting his hair with just his hunting knife and nothing to look into to see his reflection as he did it.

"Do you think I should cut my hair? Maybe make it Maggie's length?" Beth asked, fingering a long lock of her hair from her ponytail.

"No," Daryl's answer was instant and the firmness in which he answered surprised her. It seemed to surprise him, too, and he glanced away, clearing his throat, clearly embarrassed. He looked at her again. "Like your hair the way it is," he said, practically mumbling it, and she smiled, feeling her cheeks warm with his words. "You should get some sleep," he swiftly changed the subject. "I'll go outside and keep first watch."

"Okay," she agreed softly, nodding her head. She wanted him to stay in here with her but knew he wouldn't when they were outside with no other protection around them. "Wake me in a few hours and I'll take over," she reminded him and he nodded, already moving to the flap, slowly bringing the zipper down.

He didn't look at her again as he left the tent and zipped it back up behind him. Beth wasn't bothered with the way he was acting. Honestly, she would be surprised if he had acted differently. This was new for both of them. Completely new and unexpected and foreign and she didn't quite know what she was doing either. She was glad they were alone for the next couple of days though. Maybe – hopefully – they would be able to figure things out.

She laid, curled on her side beneath the blanket, and she closed her eyes, almost instantly falling off to sleep.

It felt like she was being gently shaken away minutes later but when she opened her eyes and saw how dark it was, she could tell it was much later. She blinked her eyes a few times and saw Daryl crouched next to her. She gave him a tired smile and slowly pulled herself up. He gave her a small smile in return and she let out a yawn, covering it with her hand.

Their first few nights together after the prison, he hadn't done this. He would take watch and never wake her up until she threw her foot down one morning and yelled at him that he needed to get sleep, too, because if he wasn't alert, if he was exhausted all of the time, he was going to get them killed. That seemed to have the desired effect and it got them both into the habit of him watching for the first half of the night and then waking her so she could watch for the rest and he could get a few hours of sleep.

"Everything okay out there?" She asked, pushing the blanket off of her.

He nodded. "Quiet."

He slowly fell onto his back and she covered him with the blanket, unable to help herself from leaning over and kissing him on the cheek. He grunted something, already falling asleep, and she smiled as she crawled from the tent, zipping the flap behind her. She felt silly for that. She and Daryl might not have been too sure what exactly they were but she knew they weren't going to be people like that – the constantly affectionate kind with one another. She pulled her knife out from the sheath and she settled herself against the tree they had set their tent up next to.

Daryl was right. It was quiet but the woods were also pitch black around her and she turned everything off except for her ears – just the way he had trained her. He said all of the senses could betray her from time to time but not her ears. If she trained her hearing and developed it and honed it, she would be able to stab a walker in the head in complete darkness if the situation ever arose.

She knew she had gotten enough rest and yet, she still felt drained. The night before and today, telling Daryl everything that had happened and Daryl's reaction, she felt relieved that it was all out in the open but it had robbed her of most of her energy. She had hated keeping it from him and yet, she had always thought she would. His reaction had been the exact reaction she had expected him to have. Complete and uninhibited rage.

And yet, she was glad she had told him. He was really the only one who needed to know.

With the leaves having fallen from the trees and their branches bare and stretched like fingers, she was able to tilt her head back and look at the stars dotting the black ink sky.

It was a cold night but so beautiful and for a moment, she was able to sit there and pretend that she and Daryl were just a couple out on a camping trip and the world hadn't ended and everyone they knew was alive and well and there weren't dead people around, wanting to eat them. They were just a normal couple on a normal camping trip. And just the mere idea of that made her smile softly to herself.

The night passed without incident and when the night began to fade into gray, she heard a rustling and then the tent flap unzipped. Daryl crawled out, already wide awake and alert, his crossbow in his hand. He stood up and stretched and tilted his head to one side and then the other, cracking his neck. He turned and saw her and for a moment, it looked as if he wasn't entirely sure what to do.

"Good morning," she greeted quietly, smiling faintly.

He gave her a slight head nod. "'Mornin'. How was it?"

She shrugged and pushed herself to her feet, her legs and back feeling stiff from sitting for too long. "Uneventful." Daryl nodded but the answer made him frown. He looked around at the woods that surrounded them and she knew what he was thinking. "We can go hunt for some while we're tracking a deer," she suggested. "If that will make you feel better."

He looked back to her and after a moment, he shook his head. "Nah. It's just… too quiet."

Beth nodded but didn't say anything. Unlike Daryl, she liked that things were quiet. "Do you want to eat some breakfast?" She asked instead.

"Let's get the tent packed away first," he said.

She helped him disassemble it which was a little easier than setting it up and Daryl returned it back into the small duffel bag. They sat down then and Beth produced a can of peach slices. They ate in silence with their fingers and she smiled as she looked at Daryl's bed head. She reached out and tried to smooth some of the hair down for him and he looked at her, seeing her smile, smiling a little himself.

He ate the last peach and she drained the can of juice and he then pulled out a thermos of water, handing it to her first. She took a few gulps and then handed it to him, watching as he took several much longer ones.

"Maybe we can find some water today, too," she suggested and he nodded.

He stood up and held his hand out for her to take, hauling her up to her feet. She looked up at him and he looked down at her and she smiled at him again faintly. He stared at her and his hand lifted to her cheek, his thumb running over her scar lightly. She hated the scar. It was so harsh looking and ugly and if her fingers accidentally brushed against it, it reminded her of so many things she wanted to do forget. And yet, Daryl seemed to prefer touching that part of her over any other. His touch was light and gentle and it was as if he was hoping that by touching it, he could make it go away.

She wished for that, too.

She bit down on her lip and lowered her eyes to the ground. She didn't want to talk about it this morning. She didn't want to talk about anything. And she knew Daryl wouldn't be one to start that particular conversation. And he didn't. Instead, he leaned in and pressed his lips to her forehead. They stood there for a moment and she felt like she was no longer breathing. She always felt like that with Daryl's displays of affection.

She wanted to tell him that she felt so warm and safe with him but she wasn't quite sure how to put her feelings into words. She had never been short on words before but she had never found herself in a situation like this before. He wouldn't believe her about the safe part anyway. Not now. Maybe he would one day but right now, Daryl was set on blaming himself for everything that had happened to her and she knew nothing she said would change that right now. Right now, she just had to let him work through this in his own way.

"Ready?" He then asked, pulling his lips slowly from her forehead, his voice a bit gruff.

"Yeah," she said softly, nodding her head, her eyes lifting back to him.

He cleared his throat and took a step back, holding his crossbow in both hands. She suddenly wished it wasn't so cold because she had always loved admiring his arm muscles in his sleeveless shirts. She felt a giggle bubble in her throat and he looked at her curiously but she just shook her head. She'd tell him that one day but not now.

Daryl turned and she followed and immediately, he was in tracker mode, his eyes studying the ground, the trees, everything that made up their surroundings.

They were quiet for most of the morning, Daryl sometimes pointing something out to her or asking if she saw anything, always ready and willing to teach her. Back with the group, she had been momentarily worried that these lessons would stop. Daryl had always been the group's hunter and tracker and he had never seemed interested in teaching anyone else and no one had ever asked to learn.

But then, it was the two of them and it seemed like it would be that for a while and she had finally built her courage to ask him one morning if he would show her how to track. He had hesitated for only a moment before he nodded and began that very day. Slowly, over the next few weeks, he trained her and though she wasn't nearly as good as him and she knew she probably never would be, she was beginning to be able to hold her own.

She had thought so many things would change when they were back with the group but she found how silly it had been to worry with Daryl picking up right where they had left off and Beth eagerly soaking up his knowledge.

She sometimes wished Shawn was still alive. He had been into the outdoors, too, and she liked to imagine that Shawn and Daryl would have gotten along well. The brother and the boyfriend. She almost giggled again. That was such a ridiculous term to use towards Daryl. There was absolutely nothing _boy_ about him.

"There's more than one," she noted and he nodded, smiling a little, obvious proud of her for able to pick up on it. "Are we going for the male?"

"No," he shook his head. "We'll go for the fawn if there's one."

"Why?" She wondered, standing straight from being bent over, studying the leaves.

"We don't know how many bucks there are in these parts. If there's a buck, he'll find a doe and there'll be more fawns. If we kill off the buck though, there'll be no more of nothin' for us to hunt anythin'. 'Sides," he continued, standing up, too. "We don't need more meat than we can eat. Too many things 'bout that a waste."

She couldn't help but smile as he talked. He was so much more than some brainless redneck and those that thought that about him were the stupid ones.

They crept along, following the trail closely and the sun rose higher in the sky. One set of the two they were following suddenly took off, veering sharply to the right and as they continued following the other set, they found out why.

"Fuck," Daryl swore under his breath and fired the crossbow, the bolt striking the walker in the head and the body slumped over the deer's body it had been eating. He sighed heavily and went to go retrieve and Beth stepped to the deer, trying to swallow down the bile rising in her throat as she looked at the bloody mess the walker had made of it. "Well," he sighed, looking to her. "We'll get back to trackin' the other one then," he said and she nodded.

"Do you mind if we rest for a few minutes first? I'm sorry. I just need to sit a minute," she said and it was actually one of the questions she hated asking. She hated feeling as if she was holding him back when she knew he could track all day without stopping.

"Ain't nothin' to be sorry 'bout," he said and she gave him a small smile before sitting down on a fallen tree log, unable to help but sigh a little with relief as she took off her pack.

She watched as Daryl circled both the deer carcass and the walker's body, muttering under his breath. He then gave the walker a swift kick before coming and sitting down next to her. She took out a bottle of water from her pack and took a gulp before offering it to him. He took it and took a gulp and then another, the whole time his eyes on the dead deer.

"It's alright," she told him softly. "That wasn't the only deer on the mountain."

"Yeah, I know. Still pisses me off though," he grumbled and took another gulp of water.

"How old were you when you killed your first deer?" She asked.

"Eight. Out with my ol' man and Merle. Really one of the only times I can 'member all three of us bein' together. My dad handed me the cross bow and tol' me the only way to learn was if I did it myself. Merle didn' think I could do it but we had been trackin' a doe and we caught up to it as it was takin' a drink. I 'member bein' so nervous 'cause I knew if I didn' do it, dad and Merle would never lemme forget it."

"But you did it," she smiled.

He nodded. "Took it home and we cleaned it in the back yard and froze most of the meat and gave some to my mom and she made stew with it that weekend. Was almost like we were a normal family or something'. Then Merle went to juvie and mom died."

Beth looked at him for a moment as he stared at the deer, his face clouded, obviously caught in the memory, and she slowly brought her head to his bicep, resting it there.

"You alrigh'?" He asked her softly.

"Mm-hmmm," she nodded, her cheek rubbing against his arm. "I just like this. Being out here with you like this again."

He was quiet for a few minutes and she didn't expect him to respond. He was still staring at the deer and the walker and he took another gulp of water.

"Me, too," he then said softly.

She smiled to herself and slowly looped her arm through his. Just a normal couple on a normal camping trip with no one else around. Just the two of them. And it was so quiet around them and it was such a wonderful thought, she could almost believe it to be true.

He turned his head then and his lips rested on the line where her hair and forehead met.

"Gettin' 'bout ready to go again?" He asked.

"Can we stay? Just a little longer?" She lifted her head and looked at him, his eyes intent on her. "I just… I don't want to leave just yet. Can we stay?"

He hesitated and she expected him to tell her that they had to get going and she knew they did – they had to track that deer and the couldn't stay away from the gas station and the others forever – but then he nodded his head and she felt a smile burst across her face, a smile that he responded with his own twitch of the lips.

She didn't hesitate. She leaned forward and pressed her lips to his gently. She didn't expect it to be a long kiss but then Daryl lifted his hand, finding the side of her neck, thumb brushing along her scar, and he pressed his lips back to hers. The instant she felt him respond, she sank into his lips, returning with a bit more pressure, pressure he met with his own, meeting her mouth with his own hard, deep kisses and his hand slid back on her head, fingers tangling in her messy ponytail.

Just a normal couple on a normal camping trip kissing in the woods.

And when the thought exploded in her mind, she wasn't surprised or taken aback by it. When it made itself known to her, she didn't actually feel that different at all. Maybe because she had suspected that it had been there for some time already, just waiting to reveal itself to her and get her to know the truth.

But there it was and she knew it without a doubt. She had fallen in love with Daryl Dixon.

…

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	11. Chapter 11

…

**Chapter Eleven.**

He was getting tired and more and more pissed off. This deer was smart and seemed to know he was coming for it, making itself constantly ahead of him and his crossbow. They had been tracking it for most of the afternoon and evening and still, nothing. Beth was quiet behind him, not asking him anything – how far they were from the deer or when they would stop and set up camp and get some rest. And he was grateful for that because right now, he was too far into hunter mode to think about anything else.

He knew she was falling behind – could hear her footsteps lagging a bit – and he knew she was tired. Hell, he was tired, too, and soon, it would be dark and he wouldn't be able to track anything anyway.

With a sigh, he finally stopped. He looked back at Beth and she looked at him but neither said anything. He felt like an idiot. There were things to hunt all over this mountain. He knew. He had been seeing their tracks all day. But he had been so set on getting this deer and now, he had wasted an entire day chasing after it.

Beth reached into her pack and fishing around for something, she pulled out a flashlight and flipping it on, she held it out for him. "Wanna keep going?" She asked.

He sighed again and shook his head. "No." He looked around at where he had stopped them in the fading sunlight. "Let's jus' camp here for the night."

Beth nodded and didn't say or ask anything as she slowly removed her pack and set it down. He didn't say anything either as he took the duffel bag and removed the tent, beginning to set it up without asking her to help him. Once it was, he didn't go inside. He sat down on the ground and remained silent. He watched as Beth gathered a few twigs and then kneeling beside him, she pulled out some of the money bills they had gathered and a pack of matches.

"Just for a little bit," she said as she started a small fire and Daryl nodded, not arguing. She settled beside him. "You want something to eat?"

He shook his head and still didn't say anything. He watched as she reached into her pack and pulled out the jar of peanut butter. She unscrewed the lid and looking into the fire, she began to scoop some out with her fingers, eating her dinner and being as quiet as he was.

He glanced over at her and the way the flames danced across her face and he thought of all of those other nights they sat by a fire like this – just the two of them in complete silence. But back then, the silence had mostly been heavy and tension-filled, both of them pissed off at the other.

This silence was different. It was the kind of silence that came from being with the other person long enough to know that words weren't necessary. He was pissed off and frustrated and Beth knew that and didn't try to coax him into feeling better. Right now, he wanted to stay pissed off and Beth was letting him. He tried to remember ever having something like that with someone else before this.

She could feel his eyes on her and she turned her head to meet him. She silently held the jar of peanut butter out to him and he nodded slightly, taking it from her. She smiled a little, obviously pleased that he was going to be eating something.

"Sing somethin'," he then said as he scooped some peanut butter out from the jar.

"The fire and me singing? Why don't we just shout for the walkers to come find us?" She asked but there was a slight smile across her lips.

"I'll take care of 'em if any come. Sing," he said again.

She was quiet for a moment, probably flipping through the thousands of songs in her mind that she knew. She then looked at him as if she was making sure that he really wanted this and when he just looked at her and said nothing, she sat up a little straighter.

"The last time I saw Richard was Detroit in '68/And he told me all romantics meet the same fate someday/Cynical and drunk and boring someone in some dark café/"You laugh," he said, "You think you're immune/Go look at your eyes, they're full of moon/You like roses and kisses and pretty men to tell you/All those pretty lies, pretty lies/When you gonna realize they're only pretty lies/Only pretty lies, just pretty lies."

He didn't know the song but he didn't most of the songs Beth sang. Her voice was soft and light and he sat there, staring in the fire, eating peanut butter and listening to her. Despite what he had shouted at her that one drunken afternoon, he had always liked her singing. The night in the grass after they had taken the prison yard and that night in the cell block when the threat of the Governor was looming over their heads and at nights when she walked back and forth, singing softly to Judith to try and coax the baby to sleep. That night in the funeral home…

He always listened to every song she sung and in a world of shit, her voice was one good thing he felt himself drawn to no matter what was happening around them. She grabbed hold of him and pulled him in and he supposed she hadn't let him go yet. Not that he was looking to be let go.

It felt good to be out in the woods like this again. Just him and her and the prize of an animal at the end of their trail. He had always felt more comfortable in the woods than any other place in the world. The fresh air and the dirt and the solitude. Being out here like this, he could almost forget everything else and he could pretend that it was just him and Beth getting some alone time. Just like other couples had done before the world ended.

The song ended and her voice faded and the silence returned.

He finished the peanut butter he wanted and handed her back the jar, watching as she screwed the red cap securely back on. She looked at him and gave him a soft smile and he didn't smile in return but his pissed off feeling had almost completely disappeared.

"What are you doin' out here with me?" He suddenly asked, needing to know.

"Nowhere else I'd rather be," she said and both her words and smile were soft.

And it was a simple answer but it was more than enough for him. It was probably the best damn answer he had ever gotten to any question he had ever asked.

And somehow, as if she knew that, she leaned closer to him. She was going to kiss him, he knew that, and he wanted her, too.

He had initiated one kiss between them – yesterday when he had been feeling angry over the words she was saying – but he hadn't since. He wasn't sure why not. He was never sure whether Beth wanted him to kiss her or not though she seemed to have no problem kissing him. He had never been around a girl like Beth before and had never done any of these sorts of things. He found himself just following her lead, hoping he wasn't screwing it up somehow.

And when Beth did kiss him, when her lips pressed to his gently, he shifted and lifted his hands to either side of her head and he pulled her in a little closer. She shifted as well and he felt her arms slowly slip around his shoulders and he pressed his lips a bit harder to hers. A soft moan escaped her and Daryl felt the blood pumping in his body spike in temperature as soon as he heard it.

He didn't know what to do but all he knew was he didn't want to stop kissing her. He kissed her again and again, each time harder than the last and he told himself to be gentle with her but he couldn't stop himself. And he realized that Beth wasn't acting like she was wanting him to stop. Her fingers were gripping his hair and her mouth was moving against his, meeting each of his kisses with eager ones of her own.

He was stunned when he felt her tongue tracing his bottom lip, making the first move, and he was the one to hesitate. He squeezed his fingers gently and pulled his head back from hers, tearing his lips slowly from hers. Beth's eyes fluttered open and they stared at one another, both of their chests heaving up and down. He saw it in her eyes, she wondering why he had pulled away and he wasn't too sure what to tell her.

He looked at her, the fire throwing them half in light, the other half in shadows, and it cracked and snapped as it burned through its kindle. The night around them was quiet. Daryl hardly noticed though as he stared at her. The longer he stared without saying anything, the deeper the blush on Beth's cheeks got darker.

"I'm sorry," he grunted for no reason whatsoever. Beth lowered her eyes for him. "Shouldn' of kissed you liked that."

She shook her head slightly, still keeping her eyes from his. "Don't apologize, Daryl. I liked it. And besides, I'm the one who kissed you first."

"Yeah," he said softly, still not knowing what to say.

His hands slowly fell from her head and he looked away, clearing his throat. He didn't know what the hell was going on between him and Beth and the more they kissed, the more he felt himself getting confused. Kissing her like that was wrong, wasn't it? He wanted her and he had had felt this pull towards her since their moonshine night but it was still wrong. It had to be. He thought of Hershel and it didn't matter what Beth said. There was no way that the man would have been alright with Daryl putting his hands or lips anywhere on Beth.

He looked at Beth and thought of everything she had gone through – both with and without him – and she was still standing and at the end of it all, she had wanted to be standing with him. That meant something. That meant a hell of a lot actually. That a girl like Beth would want to kiss a guy like him, it meant everything.

"Beth," he said her name then and she lifted her head immediately, looking at him, and he could see the hope clear in her eyes. He still had no idea what to say. "I don't mind when you kiss me," he told her and maybe it wasn't exactly the right thing to say but she melted into a smile at it nonetheless. A real Beth Greene smile and he smiled a little, too.

His hand lifted again to her head and his thumb brushed back and forth across her scar. He wasn't too sure why he never seemed able to stop touching her like this. He wasn't even sure when it had happened. The porch? Or the funeral home or when she was taken? Or was it even before all of that? The need to protect her had always been there. Even when they went days without exchanging words with one another, going from place to place during that winter after the farm fell and then in the prison, he always knew he had to keep her – and the others – safe. She was part of his family; _his_ to protect.

"It still sometimes hurts," she admitted quietly.

"Yeah," he nodded and swallowed. "That happens."

He didn't elaborate, not necessarily ready to. He knew if he could tell anyone about the scars, it would be Beth. At the farm, when he had fallen down the ravine and when Herschel had patched him up again, both he and Rick had seen the scars all on his back but they had never asked him about it. No one else knew they were there. Not even Carol. He knew that if things like this kept going with Beth, she would be the one to see them next but he wasn't ready to tell her yet. What would he tell her? That his old man would get drunk and beat him for sport? Hell, he doubted Herschel ever threatened to even spank her.

"Does it always?" She asked as his thumb continued tracing it back and forth.

He shrugged. "Depends," he answered but again, he didn't elaborate on what he meant. And Beth knew him well enough to know he wasn't going to. "Tomorrow, we'll get that deer and then we'll head back to the station," he said and she nodded. "Rick told me we're gonna be stayin' there for a while."

She gasped at that as her face burst with light. "Really?"

Daryl felt his lips tugging upwards. "Yeah. This mountain's good. Probably won't last forever but for now, it's good enough."

And there was the second Beth Greene smile of the night and it punched him in the stomach. He wondered how he had never noticed her smiles before and then when she was gone, it was all he could think about. When now, with her back, they were still too few and far in between but sometimes, she would do this. She would smile and look so pretty and happy and he felt like the old Beth was trying to get back to the surface.

"Get some sleep. I'll wake you in a few hours," he said and she nodded.

She gave him one more soft smile before slipping away from him and crawling into the tent. She didn't zip the flap shut though and he could see her lay down, covering herself with the blanket. He felt a sudden urge to go and lay down with her but he couldn't. He had to stay up and keep watch and keep her safe. He still had to show her that he could do that.

…

* * *

><p>"Was beginning to worry about you two," Rick admitted as he met them in the road, having seen them step from the trees.<p>

The fawn was slung over Daryl's shoulders and Rick helped take the crossbow and Daryl's bag that Beth was carrying in addition to her own things.

"Get the stove workin'?" Daryl asked, ignoring Rick's concern.

Rick nodded. "We get that deer clean, we could have a good dinner tonight," he said. "Everything go good out there?" He asked, looking between the both of them and Daryl nodded, glancing to Beth, who also nodded her head. "We'll be glad to have you _both_ back."

Daryl noticed how Beth lowered her eyes at that, pretending to be busy, fiddling with the hatchet she held in her hands.

"Any trouble here?" Daryl asked, looking past Rick to the station before back to him.

"No," Rick shook his head. "Mentioned to Michonne though. Maybe you and her could take the car and go on a run. See what's around here. Since we're gonna be staying for a while, it's not a bad idea to stock up on things we'll need to get through the winter."

"Tomorrow," Daryl agreed.

"Excuse me," Beth said softly to them both and Daryl's eyes followed her as she moved away from them both and began heading towards the gas station. Rick turned his head and watched her, too, for a moment before looking back to Daryl.

"Everything alright?" Rick raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah," Daryl shifted the deer on his shoulders and began walking, Rick beside him. "She's just quieter nowadays," he then shrugged, hoping that explained it.

She had been quiet all morning. Since he tracked the deer down and they began heading back towards the station. He had almost suggested to her that he drop the deer off with the others and they head back into the woods for a few more days. In the woods, she had been smiling and relaxed and they had been able to be together without everyone watching them with curiosity, all of them wondering what was going on between the two of them.

Rick sat with him as he cleaned the deer, neither of them talking. Daryl was able to gut a deer without thinking about it but he still gave it all his concentration. He looked to Rick and the man was in deep thought but at the same time, Daryl could tell he wanted to say something. He seemed to be debating with himself though rather or not to.

The back door of the station squeaked open and they both turned to see Michonne coming out, coming towards them. Daryl didn't stop, his hands deep in the deer now. She came to stand near them but she didn't say anything either and the three of them remained silent. Judith was crying inside and they could hear Tyreese trying to coax her down. And then Carol was taking her, trying to rock her and shush her with gentle words but Lil' Asskicker was still crying up a storm, wailing from her little lungs.

Rick stood up, brushing his hands on his thighs, ready to go inside to see if he could calm his daughter down.

But he stopped when they all heard Beth.

"One evening as the sun went down and the jungle fire was burning/down the track came a hobo hiking and he said boys I'm not turning/I'm heading for a land that's far away/beside the crystal fountains/so come with me/we'll go and see the Big Rock Candy Mountains."

Daryl heard her soft voice as she sang and he felt his lips twitching in a smile as he worked at the intestines. He hadn't heard that song in so long – not since the prison and he would hear Beth to sing to Lil' Asskicker to try and get her to settle down at night. She had learned that this was one of the few songs that worked on the baby and it still seemed to have the same power, Judith's crying growing fainter now until disappearing completely as Beth continued singing the song to her.

Rick stood there, listening for a moment, and then a smile of his own passed over his lips before he went back inside, the door slapping shut behind him.

The song continued as Daryl pulled his hands out from the deer. He took off his gloves and dug the pack of cigarettes he had stuffed in his back pocket. He popped one into his mouth, lit it, and balancing it on his lower lip, he put his gloves back on and dove his hands back into the deer.

Michonne let out something of a laugh. "That's a redneck postcard right there."

Daryl smirked a little but didn't say anything as he continued gutting the deer and Beth's voice softly filtered from inside.

"What are you going to do with all of that?" Michonne asked, tilting her head towards the bloody mess in a pile near him.

"Burn it," he said. "Used to just gut 'em and leave it in the woods for the animals. Can't do that anymore obviously."

She nodded but didn't say anything else. She seemed to be keeping watch and Daryl wanted to tell her that there was no reason for her to be doing that but he didn't. He and Michonne were alike in so many ways and he understood, more than anyone probably, that she just needed to be outside and away from everyone for a little bit sometimes.

He finished cleaning the deer and stood up, grunting as he stretched out his stiff back and taking one last drag of his cigarette before flicking it away. Without exchanging words, Michonne helped him start a fire. As they tossed the parts of the deer into the flames, he felt Michonne looking at him and when he turned his head to look at her, she didn't move her eyes away like most people who had just been caught staring. Instead, Michonne kept on staring at him and Daryl couldn't help but frown.

"What?" He asked.

"We're going on a run tomorrow," she told him. "Is Beth going to be coming with us?"

Daryl's frown remained. He hadn't really thought of that. "Why? You don't want her to?"

"Didn't say that," she shook her head. "Just wondering. Can't imagine you going somewhere without her."

He wasn't sure what to say to that. Going somewhere without Beth honestly hadn't occurred to him. He wasn't comfortable with her out of his sight. And it wasn't as if he didn't trust the rest of the group to keep an eye on her but he knew, deep down, he didn't completely trust them to care if something did happen to her.

They had gotten too attached to one another and maybe his current, still growing, feelings towards Beth weren't right. Maybe the group didn't approve and this was Michonne's way of telling him that but he looked at her now and he didn't really care. Maybe later, he would, but right now, Beth had just gotten back. After everything they had been through, he had gotten her back and he wasn't just going to push her aside. He couldn't.

It was like Rick said. Something _had_ happened when it was just the two of them and Daryl knew he couldn't pretend it didn't. He couldn't ignore it. Couldn't ignore her soft skin or the way she moaned softly when he cupped the back of her head or moved his lips against hers. Or the way she smiled faintly at him and gave him real Beth Greene smiles or knew what he wanted or what he was thinking without having to exchange a word. Or the way she could say one thing to him that was always exactly what he needed to hear in that moment. He couldn't ignore all of that and he admitted to himself that didn't want to.

Carol cooked the deer on the stove upstairs with cans of carrots and the group was happy as they ate their filling dinner. Carl was even acting like the teenager he was – something they all sometimes forgot – and refused to eat his vegetable until Rick told him that if he did, he could go out with Daryl, Michonne and Beth tomorrow. Everyone laughed as he shoveled the carrots into his mouth as quickly as he could.

Beth sat apart from the others – still a part of the group but still with distance between herself and the others and Daryl had plopped himself next to her.

"Others have been talkin'," he said and she turned her head towards him curiously. "Some of them are goin' to start sleepin' upstairs." He looked at her to find her eyes resting on him. "I didn' know if you wanted to go find a bed for yourself. Can imagine you're tired of the hard floor."

Beth didn't say anything. She just simply looked at him for a few minutes, quietly, and he almost shifted uncomfortably because he had always thought her eyes were too damn big and knowing and he felt like sometimes, when she looked at him, no one was able to read his mind better than her.

"I like our space behind the counter," Beth then said and shook her head. "Unless you wanted to move upstairs and find yourself a bed?" She posed it as a question.

Daryl shook his head and took a strip of the meat with his fingers. "Ain't gonna be sleepin' somewhere without you," he grunted, not looking at her, but he could sense her smile.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	12. Chapter 12

**Thank you so, so much to those reading this story and leaving reviews. I know some didn't like the direction I took in the story with Beth being raped at the hospital but Beth is strong and she's a survivor and Daryl knows it. Everyone needs to know that, too. She's not just some pretty Disney princess. **

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Twelve.**

"Beth."

She turned her head away from the window and saw that Daryl was holding a gun, handing it back to her as he kept his eyes on the road, his other hand on the steering wheel. She took it and rested it on the seat beside her while keeping her hand on it and turned back towards the window. With Daryl driving, Michonne sat in the front passenger seat beside him and Carl sat in the backseat next to her.

She wasn't sure why but she was remembering car trips in the summer with her family, sharing a backseat with Maggie and Shawn. Maggie always sat on the left and Shawn sat on the right and because she was the youngest, she always had to sit in the middle and they would fidget and argue and her dad, driving, always threatened them that he would come back there to get them to stop. That always made Maggie and Shawn laugh, telling him that they wanted to see him get back there.

She closed her eyes and rested her forehead against the glass.

She wondered how far they were going to drive but she didn't ask. It wasn't as if Daryl knew either. They had been driving for almost an hour and Daryl had said they would have to stop soon and siphon gas from another car when they saw it. He had taught her how to do that, too, even though they had traveled without a car. "Just to show you", he had said and she had been eager to learn. She had wanted to learn everything he could show her.

She couldn't help but think of Maggie. She wondered where her sister was; if she was alright; if she had thought of her yet. Beth doubted it though. Maggie was with Glenn and to Maggie, that was all that mattered. She wondered if they would ever see each other again. She loved Maggie so much. She was her sister and her best friend and she had just thought that she was the same to Maggie.

"Hey."

Beth snapped her eyes open and she realized that she had drifted off and now, the car was stopped. She saw walkers on the other side of the parking lot Daryl had pulled into, shuffling their way closer to them. Michonne and Carl were already outside, weapons drawn and ready.

Daryl was turned in the front seat, looking back at her. She looked at him for a moment and then looked out the window.

"Where are we?" She asked though she could clearly see the dollar store they were in front of. It was nestled in a small strip mall, a hair salon on one side and a pet supplies store on the other.

"First place we've really seen that might be worth lookin' into. Don't have that much room though so we'll probably have to make a few trips if there's anything inside," he said. He looked at her for a moment and then asked, "You okay?"

She nodded slightly and gave him a small, but genuine, smile. "Why wouldn't I be?" She asked and meant it.

After they ate last night and the others had begun going upstairs to see which room they could take for themselves and figure out who would share with who, Rick had taken first watch and she and Daryl had gone to lie on the floor behind the counter. When they had been woken up later by Rick so Daryl could watch next, she had found herself with Daryl lying behind her, his arms around her, and she had felt herself blushing in the dark.

She wondered how she was able to sleep without him.

And seeing her smile, he smiled a little, too.

The walkers were getting closer and both Beth and Daryl got out of the car to join Michonne and Carl. Between the four of them, they took them out with little problem and Daryl went to the windows of the store, pounding on one with the butt of his crossbow. As they waited for the walkers inside to come to the front of the store so they could dispatch of them, Beth looked around, shielding her eyes with the flat of her palm from the bright sun.

"Carl," she said, turning to the boy. "Can you cover me?"

He nodded, the unasked question on his face. There was a black two-door pickup truck parked in front of a Laundromat a few spaces down from where they were and a walker was trapped inside, throwing itself against the glass and snarling once Beth approached.

She looked to Carl and he nodded, stepping forward. He pulled the door open just wide enough for the walker to try and lunge out and Beth swiftly stuck her knife in his skull. Carl then opened the door completely and the walker fell into a heap on the asphalt. Beth hoisted herself up onto the bench seat and saw the keys lying on the floor on the passenger side. She slipped them into the ignition and turned the key, listening to the engine sputter and then roll over, the truck rumbling to life. She looked at Carl and they shared a grin.

She reversed out of the spot and drove the truck to the doors of the dollar store, reversing it so the back bed was closest to the doors. She turned it off and slipped the keys into her back pocket. There had been three walkers in the store and Daryl and Michonne had taken them out easily. When he saw the truck, Daryl looked at her.

Beth smiled faintly and shrugged. "Now we have more room for more stuff," she said.

His smile and the pride evident in his eyes was enough to make her blush.

The four of them slipped inside the dark store, each taking a shopping cart and splitting into four different directions. It was a large store and though it was in quite a mess, Beth found that there was still quite a bit of merchandise left behind. She began filling her cart with all of the blankets she could find, extra pillows, gloves, hats and scarves, some clothes that would fit Judith and some fresh underwear and socks for everyone else.

Michonne and Carl were both in the food aisles, taking every canned good the shelves had. Beth pushed her cart further into the store to find Daryl in the small hardware section. He was taking every tool hanging there and she saw candles and flashlights as well as two sleeping bags already in his cart.

"What are these for?" She couldn't help but ask.

Daryl didn't look as he was taking packs of nails and screws and tossing them into the cart. "If you and me are gonna be sleepin' on the floor, no reason why we can't make it comfortable."

Beth smiled but didn't say anything else and she pushed her cart from the aisle, heading to the medicine section. It was all expired but she took all of the pill bottles, sweeping them into her cart and grabbed the first-aid kits as well as the boxes of Band-Aids and bandages. This was turning into such an amazing haul, she felt herself smiling. She wondered how far in the middle of nowhere they were that few people had passed through before them.

She went to the front of the store and began putting everything in the plastic bags to make it easier to handle and carry. She then went out to the pickup truck, placing the bags in the back bed. Daryl came out to toss his own stuff into the back and he then handed her an empty gallon gas can he had found inside while holding one of his own.

"Michonne and Carl are still shoppin'. Told them we'd go and find some gas," he said.

She nodded and they walked away from the store, heading to a few cars at the end of the parking lot. Today, she was going to pretend that she and Daryl had been on a drive together like any other normal couple and their car had run out of gas. She looked up at him. Is that what they were? A couple? It felt so out of place to think of Daryl in any role like that. A boyfriend. One half of a couple. It just didn't seem to fit him and yet, if they weren't any of those things to one another, what were they?

She wouldn't ask. Did it really matter what they were? It was the end of the world and the dead were trying to eat them. Somehow, relationships and talks like this seemed ludicrous. She knew he cared for her and that was enough.

She wondered if she should tell him she loved him or if that would be one of her secrets. No, she should tell him. Life was too short and she didn't know what would happen tomorrow or even today to either of them.

She did as Daryl had showed her. She set the can down and unscrewing the cap of the car's gas tank, she slipped one end of the plastic tubing into the tank. She took a few deep breaths and then began to suck on the other end of the tube. As soon as she tasted the gas, she quickly pulled her end out and slipped it down into the gas can, watching as the gas began to flow.

"Atta girl," Daryl nodded, proud again.

She smiled up at him and then, feeling brave just then, she pushed herself up on her toes and pressed her lips to the corner of his mouth. "I love you, Daryl," she said to him softly as if she didn't want anyone else to possibly overhear.

She wasn't surprised when she pulled away. As expected, his face had gone completely blank. She wasn't bothered by it though. The reaction was very Daryl. She just gave him a small smile before putting her attention back to the gas. He didn't say anything and she didn't say anything further and he remained silent as they siphoned gas from two other cars before heading back towards their own vehicles.

Michonne and Carl had finished loading the canned goods into the back of their first car.

"We haven't a haul like this in a long time. Almost too good to be true," Michonne commented. Daryl didn't say anything and just nodded in agreement. "Me and Carl will take this car back. You and Beth take the pickup truck?"

Again, Daryl didn't say anything but nodded again. Beth took the keys from her pocket and handed them to him before sliding into the passenger side. She watched as Michonne and Carl pulled away in their car but Daryl still hadn't gotten into the truck. She craned her head and saw him still standing there, keys in his hands. She watched him for a moment before turning around, facing forward again. Maybe she shouldn't have said that to him. They were kissing, yes, and sharing the same sleeping space together but maybe it wasn't more than that. They had spent weeks together on their own and he had looked for her when no one else had seemed to care about what had happened to her but maybe what was between them wasn't anything at all and she was wrong.

She had never been in love before. She had had boyfriends, yes, but she had never deluded herself into thinking she was in love with them like many girls did their age when dating.

But being with Daryl, she found herself wanting to be around him all of the time. She felt safe and warm with him and important and he didn't look at her as some burden or some useless little girl. He looked at her like he knew she was capable of so much and he believed in her. He gave her a pull in the stomach that both hurt and was quiet pleasant at the same time.

She had never been in love before but what she felt towards Daryl was so different from anything she had ever felt that she had made the assumption that she was in love with him. No. It wasn't an assumption. She _knew_. She knew without a doubt in her mind that she loved him. And honestly, how could she not?

Daryl finally came to the driver's side, opening the door and sliding in behind the wheel. She sat and expected him to start the engine and start the drive back to the station and the others but he didn't move. He just sat there.

She wasn't sure what to do or say so she didn't do anything or say anything. She just sat there and looked at him as he was still fiddling with the keys.

"I got you this in the store," he suddenly said in his gruff voice that gave her shivers.

She watched as he reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled out something small in a small jar. He held it out for her and she took it with curious fingers. It was a small candle – vanilla scented. She looked at him, curious and hope all mixed together on her face.

"When we were out there, you said one time that vanilla was your favorite scent and you missed it," he said, not looking at her. "Saw that inside and thought of you."

Beth looked at him and then down at the candle and then at him again. "Daryl…" she thought of something to say but the same three words were the only ones on her mind. "I love you," she said again.

He turned his head, finally looking at her.

"You don't have to say it back," she was quick to assure him. "You don't ever have to say it. I know you care about me and that's enough."

"Is it?" He asked softly.

She nodded without hesitation. "It is. I'm going to say it to you though. If you don't mind."

Daryl looked away again and he swallowed and didn't say anything. He finally slid the key into the ignition and turned, the truck's engine rumbling in response. He pulled away from the store and began to drive them back. They didn't talk the entire time but she didn't feel uncomfortable or upset. She felt nothing but relief. She hadn't even realized how badly she wanted to tell him her feelings for him until the words were given voice and her chest felt light now as if keeping it in had been pressing her like a weight.

When they got back to the station, everyone came to help them with their load and Rick and Daryl stepped away, exchanging quiet words between them. It took them each several trips in and out of the station to unload both vehicles and then everything was taken from the bags and spread on the floor so everything could be separated and distributed. Rick had told the group that morning that they would be staying here for a while and everyone's mood seemed light – all relieved that they would get the chance to stay put in one place and maybe, make it their home.

She took a pair of gloves she had gotten for Rick and stepped outside, waiting on the porch when she saw Daryl and Rick still talking by the rusted gas pumps. Rick was saying something and making a gesture to their surroundings and Daryl was listening, nodding.

When their discussion ended, they both turned back to the station. Seeing her on the porch, Daryl hesitated but Rick smiled. Beth smiled in return and held out the pair of gloves.

"For you," she said.

"Thank you, Beth." He instantly slid them on and then bent his fingers a few times to get them fitting his hands better. "It was a hell of a haul, you two," he said to both of them before going inside.

Beth looked to Daryl, who was still hesitating, and as she looked at him, for the first time in such a long time, she was beginning to feel nervous around him. She didn't know what to say though and the silence between them stretched.

"I don't know what you want from me," he then said.

She wished he had just stayed quiet.

"I don't want anything from you," she shook her head. "I just… I just want _you_."

He snorted at that. "Girls always want somethin'," he said.

That made her frown. She opened her mouth to respond but she closed it before she could when she realized that she didn't know what to say. She knew he was trying to make her regret her words or take them back but she wasn't going to do that. It was such a Daryl Dixon thing to do.

Everything around them was too uncertain now. If she loved him, why wouldn't she want him to know that?

So without saying anything at all, she turned and went back inside. She wasn't surprised when he didn't follow her. She spent the rest of the day helping Carol in the kitchen upstairs, getting all of their food organized and taking inventory; doing anything to not think of Daryl. She didn't know where he was and she had seen the look of surprise on Carol's face when Carol had asked and Beth hadn't been able to answer.

"Probably hunting," Beth answered with a shrug, trying to look as indifferent as possible.

Carol nodded and was quiet for a moment. "Everything alright between you two? Nowadays, it's rare to see one of you without the other."

She didn't mean to but she felt her throat grow thick at those words. She didn't know if that would be the truth anymore. He was going to try and push her away now. She knew it.

"He just needs his space from me right now," Beth was able to respond.

Carol didn't say anything else and Beth was grateful.

They had gotten cans of Beefaroni from the store that weren't too badly expired and they ate dinner scattered around the station in their own little groups. Beth ate alone, on the floor behind the counter. Daryl still hadn't come back and she didn't know when he would; didn't know that if when he did, he would be sleeping with her. Nonetheless, she had taken the sleeping bags and spread them out and then covered them with the few blankets she had gotten for them as well as the pillows.

After eating, she set her bowl aside to wash later and she laid down. She set the small candle down by her pillow and lit the wick before curling onto her side. She wasn't going to cry. It wouldn't solve anything and really, why would she cry? She was disappointed, yes, and things were probably going to be different between them now – if Daryl's reaction was any indication – but she wasn't going to cry. She didn't regret telling him and crying would mean that she was sad over all of this. She loved him and he was a dick and they both knew these things.

She closed her eyes and felt herself drifting off. She almost began to tell herself that he wouldn't love her because of what had happened in the hospital. He kissed her, yes, and held her but maybe touching her or even taking things further between them would be something he would never do. Maybe he looked at her and saw the guards who had touched her already before him.

No, that wasn't it and she knew it. Her mind was just wandering to all sorts of possibilities and thoughts no matter how ridiculous and untrue they were. That wasn't Daryl. To him, she wasn't damaged goods. He had stormed off but he had come back. He had come back.

She felt the blankets shift and she opened her eyes. Daryl now laid beside her on his back, his hand fisted on his forehead as he stared up at the ceiling. He had blown out the candle and it was so dark and it took her eyes a moment to adjust before they settled on him, seeing him perfectly. He didn't say anything and she didn't say anything either. She felt like she had said enough already.

"Need to do another run," he then said in a quiet voice. "Rick wants to get us a fence built. Nothin' too fancy. Wood and chicken wire. Enough to keep the walkers out. Wants to build it all around the station. We'll dig trenches, too."

Beth listened quietly.

"If we're gonna be here all winter, we gotta keep us safe," he said. "Gotta keep you safe," he then said in a much softer tone. He turned his head and looked at her. "I'm probably goin' tomorrow. Take another drive to see what's near. Need a hardware store or somethin' like that. You up for another run?"

She nodded, still looking at him, still not speaking.

He looked at her and didn't say anything else. She wondered if he would say anything about this afternoon and her quiet declaration or his reaction but he didn't and she wasn't surprised or disappointed. It was all to be expected. His reaction then and his reaction now.

They both just stayed quiet. Beth moved closer to him and she moved her head, bringing it to a rest on his shoulder. He didn't tense or flinch and she closed her eyes again. Daryl shifted and she felt him bring the blankets over both of them and his arm slowly curled around her lower back, holding onto her. He wasn't falling asleep. She could hear his breathing, could still feel the alertness in his body, flexing at every little sound that was made in the night. She felt herself drifting with, being near him keeping her warm.

She meant what she had told him. He didn't have to say he loved her. She knew Daryl cared for all of them, deeply cared for her but with everything he had been through in his own life before the turn – most of which she still didn't know about, she realized – perhaps he wasn't able to actually love anything. And that was okay. Honest. He took care of her. Her parents and her brother and Maggie had loved her but no one had actually cared for her in the way that Daryl did. When she had been taken, Daryl had practically torn Atlanta apart in his search for her. He had done everything he could to get her back and he had never stopped believing that she was alive and he would find her.

She shivered at the thought and snuggled closer to him. She felt his arm tighten around her.

"You cold?" He asked softly.

"You're here," she whispered back. "I'm not sorry I said it," she then decided to tell him, tilting her head up so she could look at him. "Are you mad at me?"

"Nah, Beth," he said gruffly and she took comfort in that he didn't think about it before answering. "No reason for me to be mad at you. I just think you're not thinkin' clear."

"I've never had head damage, Daryl. I'm thinking just fine," she informed him and settled her head back onto his shoulder. Her arm rested across his middle and she hugged him.

She heard him smirk a little at her retort but he didn't say anything else. They were quiet after that and she felt his body relax completely, his breathing slowing, growing deeper. And she felt herself falling back asleep, his arm holding her tight and his warmth encasing her safely. Always keeping her safe. Always protecting her.

She wasn't sorry in the least for falling in love with Daryl Dixon. Who could blame her?

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	13. Chapter 13

**Thank you - as always - for the reviews, follows and favorites with this story. I was planning on ending it after twelve chapters but the response has encouraged me to expand it a bit. Just a couple of quick things - Maggie and Glenn will be returning in a later chapter and also, I will continue my other Daryl/Beth story _Playing House_ once I finish this one. Thank you again!**

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Thirteen.**

Beth wasn't able to come with him on the run as they had originally planned. Judith woke up in a terrible mood and the baby wouldn't stop crying as she was passed from person to person in an effort to try and get her to calm down again. She seemed to only begin to quiet down when she was passed to Beth. In her warm embrace and with her soft songs, Judith finally began to calm down – but only if Beth continued holding her so accompanying Daryl on the run that day wasn't possible.

Daryl wound up taking Sasha and Carl and Beth stood on the front porch of the station, Judith in her arms, watching as they headed towards the truck. Daryl lingered behind though and looked at her. He still didn't know how to react to those three words she had said yesterday. He knew he didn't want to believe her even though he knew Beth always said what was on her mind and wasn't the sort to tell lies. He didn't want to believe that a girl like Beth would ever love a guy like him and he told himself that she only thought she did because she thought he was the only one who gave a damn about her. She was just confused and mixing her feelings up.

"Don't wander off," he told her. "Stick close to the station and make sure you always have your knife on you."

Beth smiled faintly up at him. "Yes, Mr. Dixon," she teased him and he scowled.

"M'serious, Beth," he frowned.

Her faint smile remained and she nodded, her eyes set on his. "I know. I'll be careful. I promise," she said. "Now you promise me."

"Promise you what?"

"Promise me you'll be safe."

"Always am," he shrugged and that made her laugh softly.

"That's a bit of an exaggeration," she teased lightly.

Daryl looked at her then. It was cold that morning and her cheeks were stained a light pink. She was wearing her hair up in her usual ponytail with the braid mixed in and a few tendrils had come loose from the wind blowing. She really was the prettiest girl he had ever seen and he wondered if he should tell her that but he knew that if he spoke those words, he would just sound like an idiot.

He lifted a hand to her face, thumb finding her scar, running the length of it. "M'promise," he said softly – probably too softly but Beth seemed to hear him perfectly and she smiled. He glanced over his shoulder to see Sasha and Carl at the truck, waiting for him but acting like they weren't, and he looked back to Beth. "You need anything when I'm out there?"

"At the hardware store?" She smiled. The wind picked up and she held Judith closer, making sure the baby's head was covered with the hat they had gotten for her. "Bubble wrap," she then said and Daryl couldn't help but look a bit confused at the request. "If they have it. I think Judith will have a blast with it."

He nodded then. "Anythin' for Lil' Asskicker," he said.

He took a step back, his hand falling from her cheek, but his eyes lingered on her. He wanted to step in and kiss her but he didn't want the others to see. He knew they weren't idiots and he and Beth weren't exactly being secretive about something going on between them but they didn't know it was a kissing kind of something and he didn't want them to see that it was.

"See 'ya later," he then said, sounding and feeling lame, but Beth just smiled at him and nodded her head.

"Love you," she told him quietly, staring directly at him, and he quickly looked away.

He finally turned and clomped down the stairs, heading for the truck. Carl slid into the middle and Sasha sat on the passenger side. Daryl handed Carl the crossbow before climbing in behind the wheel and he looked at Beth still standing on the porch as he turned the key in the ignition. As he headed from the station and down the gravel road, he kept one eye to the side view mirror, watching Beth until the road curved and he lost sight of her.

"So, what's the plan?" Carl asked, fiddling with the heat vents.

"Gonna head back in the direction of the dollar store," Daryl said. "See what's past that. We need anything we can build a fence with. Need shovels, too."

"You think staying here could work?" Sasha spoke up.

"If we get a fence built," Daryl shrugged.

Silently, he thought of the prison. If any place in the world could have worked, it should have been there. But maybe that's why it didn't. They had gotten too comfortable being there. They had deluded themselves into thinking they could spend the rest of their lives there. He never should have told Michonne the Governor's trail had gone cold. He never should have told her to stop looking. He should have helped her track him down before he had been able to return the favor and found them.

He thought of the gas station and Beth sitting on the porch, telling him she loved it here. He knew Beth probably would have loved any place they had found. She just wanted a home. He knew that. And he'd be sure to give her, and all of them, a home for the winter. He just didn't know if it would last past that. He didn't want to get his hopes up. Hope was useless.

They drove and Sasha and Carl played the food game, listing the foods they missed the most and making all of their stomachs growl.

"We should get chickens," Carl said.

"Sure," Daryl smirked. "We'll just pick up a couple from the store."

Carl frowned at him. "We should keep our eyes out. Think if we had a couple with us. We would have eggs. Fried eggs in the morning…" he then trailed off, practically licking his lips.

"Wanna get a cow, too?" Daryl asked.

Carl rammed his elbow into his side and Daryl almost let out a laugh. They passed the dollar store and Daryl let his foot off the gas a little, slowing down so they wouldn't miss anything. Sasha leaned forward in the seat, her eyes glued to their passing surroundings. Typical small southern town with just a few stores, a tattered American Flag hanging from the post office. It almost reminded Daryl of the town he had grown up in. Nothing to write about. A poor shitty backwoods town that people only showed up in when they got lost.

"There!" She suddenly said. "We should check in there."

Daryl followed to where her finger was pointing and nodded in agreement. He pulled to a stop in front of the feed store and Carl handed him the crossbow. He supposed there was one good thing about being so far deep in the middle of nowhere. Not that many walkers had wandered around here yet. They killed off the few they saw and he opened the door of the store, a bell overhead tinkling out. They waited a few moments and he shot a bolt into the walker that came stumbling up one of the aisles.

The store was picked over but there were still a couple of shovels and a bag of corn feed that Daryl hefted over his shoulder to carry out to the truck. Maybe Carol could figure out something to do with it. As they went up and down each aisle, grabbing anything that even had the possibility of being useful, he kept his eye out for bubble wrap.

"Daryl," Carl called out to him softly and Daryl instantly came, crossbow aimed. He was standing in the back storage room and when Daryl saw him and saw he wasn't in danger, he lowered the weapon. "It's not that much," he said, pointing to a few spools of chicken wire that were stored in there.

"Enough for now," he said. "Sasha," he stuck his head out of the storage room and seeing her, he jerked his head, signaling her to come.

The three of them carried the spools of chicken wire to the truck and Daryl looked it over, his mind racing. This might be able to work with the front half of the station. They just needed to find something to protect their back end. He thought of the couple of cabins up the mountain road they had explored. Maybe they could break those down and use the wood. That might work. They'd keep their eyes out for more things though. Chicken wire alone wasn't going to keep them safe and protected.

"Keep your eyes out for kennels like for dogs from now on anywhere we go," he told them as they headed back into the store, wanting to do one more sweep before they left. "We can break them apart and use the fencing. And bubble wrap," he added. Both Sasha and Carl looked at him, confused, at that. "Judith wants bubble wrap."

When they got all they could, they loaded back into the pickup truck and Daryl headed back. It hadn't been a total waste of time but they needed more. They always needed more.

When they arrived back at the station, Daryl showed Rick what they had managed to get and told him about his idea for ripping the houses apart for their timber.

"That's a good idea," Rick nodded. "We can start on that tomorrow. Right now, we should work on setting the chicken wire up and we'll start digging the trenches. Everything alright out there?" He asked.

Daryl nodded. "I don't know where we are but it's quiet." He pursed his lips together, glanced around, and Rick studied him for a moment.

"Makes me a little nervous, too," Rick read his mind. "But we'll make it work. Just for a few months anyway." Daryl nodded again but didn't say anything. "I've been thinking. If we see anyone… we don't even ask them the questions anymore. No one new can be brought in."

"Wasn't lookin' for new companions," Daryl shrugged.

"Need you to do something," Rick then told him. Daryl nodded, readily agreeing to anything that was needed. "Find water somewhere. A spring or creek or… something."

"You got it. I'll head out now," Daryl said.

"Eat something first. You gonna take Beth?"

"Ain't Lil' Asskicker a little attached to her today?" Daryl asked though if Beth was able to come with him, he wasn't going to tell her to stay behind.

It had been weird out there without her. He trusted Carl and Sasha and they were as tough and capable as anyone else but he had gotten so used to moving with Beth next to him. She knew each of his movements before he made them just as he knew hers. They could anticipate with the other and sometimes, that was more important out there than anything.

"She seems calmer this afternoon. Beth will probably get laryngitis from singing so much," Rick said and Daryl almost smiled at that. "Eat something and then you can go."

Inside the station, he went to the counter, peeking over the side but not seeing Beth there. He set his crossbow down and headed up the stairs to the apartment. He heard a soft song being sung and he followed it into one the bedrooms that Rick, Carl and Judith had claimed as their own. Beth was sitting on the floor holding onto Judith's hands as the baby balanced herself on her unsteady legs. Daryl blinked for a moment. He didn't know the baby had been able to stand up yet. Beth noticed him in the doorway and she looked at him.

"She's growing up," Beth smiled and looked back to Judith as the baby plopped down on her bottom again. "Soon, she'll be chattering away and having us chase her everywhere."

Daryl wanted to smile at the mental images that provoked. He stepped into the room. "Looked but couldn' find bubble wrap," he said.

"Thank you for looking. How did everything else go?" She asked.

"Missed you out there wit' me," he said before he could stop himself and he felt the back of his neck flush but his words made her burst into a wide, happy smile.

Thankfully, she didn't comment on it and Daryl was grateful for that. He just wanted to forget that he had ever said that.

Beth stood up. "You hungry?"

Daryl nodded. "Need to eat and then I gotta head out. Look for water. Wanna come?"

Her head nod was immediate. "Yes," she said and he didn't know why but he almost felt relieved at that; as if he had expected her to refuse or something.

He watched as Judith rolled herself over and pushed herself on her knees and hands, crawling away, past them and out of the room. Beth laughed softly and followed after her and Daryl followed them both from the room.

He could admit to himself – and only to himself – that he loved hearing Beth laugh. He was worried that when she first came back, she would never laugh again or smile or sing or do any of the things that made her Beth. But slowly, it seemed to be happening. It amazed him. Even after everything she had been through, she found reasons to smile and laugh. She was one of the toughest people he knew and he didn't know why so many people – her sister included – seemed to not see that in her.

Judith crawled into the living room where Tyreese sat, cleaning his gun, and the man smiled broadly upon seeing the baby toddle his way. Beth turned into the kitchen where no one was and Daryl followed and the instant he did, Beth turned and pushing herself on her toes, she pressed her lips to his in a sudden kiss. He was taken aback for a moment as he felt her hands on his shoulders, her arms then sliding around his neck, her lips caressing his. It took him just a moment to react.

His hands went to her hips and he pushed her back a step, her body colliding with the cheap wood table behind her. He moved his mouth against hers almost hungrily, realizing that he hadn't kissed her in so long – not since yesterday and she told him those words.

Those words echoed in his head now. _I love you_. He still didn't believe it and knew he probably never would. It didn't make any sense that she would love him and he wasn't going to allow himself to believe in it.

She had said something truthful yesterday though. He did care for her – probably more than anyone left in this world – and he would always do anything he had to do to keep her safe but he wasn't going to believe love had anything to do with it.

He was a Dixon and they weren't necessarily known for their ability to love something.

He pulled his mouth from hers when his lungs began to burn and she looked up at him with swollen lips and a panting chest. He didn't say anything as he looked down at her and he wondered if he should be saying something. He was never good at this kind of thing even when there wasn't kissing involved. He wasn't good with words when situations called for them and usually wound up saying something stupid or completely wrong.

Beth looked up at him and smiled faintly and she didn't say anything so he kept quiet, too.

"We'll get some food to take with us," she slipped away from him. "How long do you think we'll be out there?"

Daryl shrugged, watching her as she opened the cabinets she and Carol had stocked all of the canned foods in. "Don't know. Hopefully not that long. Hopin' there's water nearby."

She nodded and took down a couple cans of beans and one of pears. She sighed softly then.

"What?" He asked as she turned back, the cans in her arms.

She smiled a little and shook her head. "I can't believe we ate through all of those Twinkies already. I should have hidden one away."

Bubble wrap and now Twinkies were quickly added to the list he had going in his head. And when the weather got warmer again, he still had to find her a snake.

…

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><p>With their packs on their backs and his crossbow in his hands, they moved through the woods behind the station, walking quietly as they always did. He kept his ears alert for anything that might sound out of the normal forest sounds but he also listened to those. A bird was singing in a tree somewhere and he heard insects still out despite the cold and the wind blowing through the trees. He found himself taking a deep breath of the clear air cutting his lungs.<p>

He saw Beth from the corner of his eye, walking a bit off to his side, being careful with her steps, and today, he was going to imagine that he was taking his girl out for a walk in the woods near his house. He had always preferred being in the woods by himself but he knew that Beth would always be the exception to that.

He stopped when he heard a distant sound – a soft familiar whoosh – and Beth stopped beside him, following his lead and clearly trying to hear what he heard. He watched her and could tell that she was struggling, her ears not as honed as his yet, and he slipped behind her. She didn't jump as he lifted his hand and covered her eyes.

"Shut everythin' off," he said in a low voice, his lips near her ears. "Do nothin' but listen."

Beth straightened her back a little and even quieted her breathing as she followed his instructions. They stood there for a few minutes, Beth straining her ears and Daryl trying not to get distracted by how she faintly smelled like vanilla.

"I hear… something," she then said. "I just don't know what it is."

His lips twitched at that and his hand slipped down. She instantly turned her head to look at him from over her shoulder.

"Water rushin' over rocks," he informed her.

She gave him a small smile. "Thank you for still teaching me all of these things."

"You thought I'd stop?" He asked and he couldn't help but frown.

"No," she shook her head. "I was just… when I was gone, I don't know." She laughed then a little as if she was embarrassed. He noticed she couldn't meet his eyes at the moment. "When I was in the hospital, thinking about you, I wondered if you would start teaching someone else all of this stuff."

Daryl shrugged at that. "No one else worth teachin," he said as he stepped past her.

He resumed walking and she fell into step with him. They didn't talk anymore and when they reached the creek with the rushing clear water, he looked and saw her smiling at the sight of it. She stepped forward and lowering herself to her knees on the side bank, she plunged one hand into the water, laughing, looking back at him, and her eyes were so bright, he felt himself smiling, too.

"It is so cold," she said, laughter still in her voice.

He watched as she looked back to the water. He couldn't see her face but he could practically hear her smiling. She had turned into him. She was happy out in the woods. Back at the station, she still kept her distance from the others and always looked as if she wasn't entirely too sure with herself and her place amongst them but when she was in the woods, she smiled and laughed. She looked as if she felt the same freedom he always felt.

She stood up then and looked at him, smiling brightly, and he wished she always smiled like that – not just when they were out here like this. He liked seeing that smile and it letting him know that she was still right here with him.

"This isn't too far," Beth noted. "We can walk here for laundry and bathing."

"Too cold to bathe," he commented.

She laughed again. "You always think it's too cold to bathe," she teased him.

He smirked but didn't say anything to that.

Beth looked at him for a moment. "I really mean it, Daryl. Thank you," she said. "I was worried that you would start teaching someone else and if you did, it was like you would be saying that you didn't expect me to ever come back."

"Didn' doubt it for a second," he said, looking down to the ground, shy all of a sudden.

"I know," she said softly. She stepped to him then and her arms slid around his waist. He didn't hesitate anymore in hugging her back. He put his arm around her neck and held her close, her head tucking beneath his chin. "I love you," she told him in a whisper then.

He looked away, off to the side. "Lack of options," he muttered but she had heard and he felt her stiffen against him.

He waited for her to pull back and either start yelling or start crying and he didn't want her to do either. He was sorry he had said that. It had just been a thought in his head he never should have given thought to but it was too late now. He said it and even if it was something he believed in, he didn't meant to say it out loud and have Beth hear it.

His own body stiffened in anticipation for what she was going to do.

When she slowly pulled her head back, he felt as if he was practically holding his breath.

She looked up at him and her eyes were dry. She didn't look like she was on the verge of tears but he could still see the sadness and something close to disappointment within them and he felt his throat grow dry and thick at the sight of that.

She looked at him for a moment and then, slowly her arms fell away from his waist. "We should head back," she said softly, stepping away from him.

Beth didn't look at him again as she turned and began walking away, back in the direction of the station. Daryl felt himself standing there though as if pinned to the spot, unable to say anything or even follow her.

With her gone now, he felt a coldness against him that he knew had nothing to do with the temperature in the air.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	14. Chapter 14

**A very different kind of chapter with little dialogue and more "action" and inner thoughts. A bit shorter, too, but I'll make up for it in the next chapter. Thank you so much for all of the reviews on the last chapter. I loved reading all of them and there were a few that I wondered if you had somehow been able to read my outline. I hope you like this chapter. It is the only one like this in the story. We'll get back to more dialogue with the next update. **

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Fourteen.**

She kept her distance from him for a few days. She knew it was the only way. She had told him she loved him more than once, he didn't know how to respond and she didn't want to force or pressure him into something he didn't want. Once she left him in the woods near the creek and she had been able to walk and think on her own, she came to all of these conclusions and decided that staying away and giving him space was the only thing to do.

They still slept together in the space behind the counter. She didn't shy away from him when she woke up with her head on his chest. Sometimes, he would be staring at her like he was waiting for her to say something but she didn't. She wasn't going to say anything. She was here and so was he and they were together and that was that. There didn't need to be a discussion. Eventually, yes, probably. But not right now.

After they woke up in the mornings, he would go one way and she would go another. He was busy outside, digging trenches and working on the fences, driving the truck up to the cabins further up the mountain, stripping them down and bringing the parts back down to the station. Slowly, they became surrounded by wire and wood and he was so exhausted each evening he came to their makeshift bed. She would kneel behind him and rub his shoulders and tell him all about her day as she did her best to loosen his knotted muscles and she knew it wasn't interesting in the least but she knew he was listening to everything.

She spent her days as if she was back in the prison. She became Judith's prime caregiver again and helped with the laundry and cooking and keeping the station clean and when Daryl went out on runs, she almost always went with him because even though they were able to spend their days doing their own thing, there was still this sense between them that they didn't like to be too far apart.

Little by little, the station was beginning to feel like home. The others all had their rooms and were beginning to save belongings and Daryl and Beth were doing that, too. Beneath the counter, there were shelves next to where they slept. Beth kept her candle and hatchet there as well as her journal though she had yet to start writing in it. Daryl kept his extra bolts and a knife he could grab at a moment's notice as well as a book he had found on one of their runs. _Treating Survivors of Childhood Abuse: Psychotherapy for the Interrupted Life_ and she didn't ask him about it but sometimes, she would see him reading it before he went to sleep at night. He had told her some stories but not all of them and she wasn't going to ask until he was ready to tell.

She sat with him sometimes when he was on watch at night even though he always told her to get some sleep. She always ignored him and wrapped a blanket around him and stayed. Sometimes, she sang softly and sometimes, she would tell him stories of her childhood but sometimes, she sat quietly, just needing to be close to him.

She didn't tell him she loved him and she caught him looking at her from time to time as if he was waiting for her to but she didn't and she wasn't going to. He already knew and she wasn't going to say it again. He didn't believe her and he just needed time and Beth stayed near while also trying to balance her distance.

Some nights, she had nightmares. Hot breath on her face and hands on her thighs and she woke up with a start, gasping for air.

Daryl was always there, his arms around her, letting her know that he was right there. He didn't ask what she had dreamed about. She knew he could probably guess. He just asked her if she was alright and she nodded her head, trying to get herself breathing normal again. They would lay down and his arms would remain around her and she would feel his lips on her head.

Some nights, he was restless in his sleep, having his own bad dreams.

He didn't wake from them and she had no idea what they were about. She never felt it was her place to ask, knowing that if Daryl wanted to talk about it with her, he would. As he tossed and turned in his sleep, she moved closer to him and rested her arm around his middle, hugging him and brushing her lips across his cheek and her touches seemed to reach him in his sleep and he almost always settled down after that.

Her daddy had said that they all had jobs to do but she had always felt – in the prison and before that during their winter in the woods and after the prison fell and now at the station – that Daryl had a hundred different jobs. He built the fences around them and solidified them and dug trenches and emptied the trenches if there were walkers who had stumbled into them, taking them and burning the bodies. He hunted for food and went on runs for supplies and Rick may have been leading them all but Daryl was the reason they were alive.

Rick seemed to think the same thing and would have to force Daryl to take some downtime every once in a while. He would always seek Beth out at these times and ask her to come into the woods with him. Sometimes, they hunted and tracked and sometimes, they would sit by the creek. Beth did laundry, scrubbing the clothes up and down the washboard, and Daryl sat close by, his crossbow beside him, keeping watch even as he smoked a cigarette and read his book. She watched him sometimes; watched as he even had a highlighter and would read something before highlighting the particular passage.

She had to bite her lip to keep from asking.

The first month they were at the station passed quietly but they made sure they were always careful and on alert. They weren't seeing as many walkers in their current location – Daryl was right when he said walkers couldn't climb for shit – and some days, they passed without seeing one at all but they had all learned their lesson. They didn't want to get too comfortable and they didn't want to fool themselves into thinking they were safe.

They were the only ones who still slept downstairs, everyone else having found a space for themselves in the apartment on the second floor, and at night, when it was just the two of them, they talked. Well, she mostly talked and Daryl always listened to every word she said even if he looked as if he wasn't. She knew better. Daryl was always listening to everything.

He was the only one to know that even though she tried not to, she missed Maggie and hoped she would see her sister again. Daryl grunted at that and she knew he wasn't Maggie's biggest fan at the moment and she agreed with him but if anyone understood blood being blood, it was Daryl.

She also admitted to him that she was still uncomfortable around the group for the most part and she didn't know if she would ever feel at ease with them as she once had. And when she said this, she felt herself lying closer to him because at least she still had him and he told her as much in his gruff low voice that gave her shivers and made her feel warm.

Judith began to walk while holding onto furniture or someone's hand and Rick realized that they had to start baby proofing things around the station. He told stories of when Carl was a baby and he nearly gave him and Lori heart attacks because he was fascinated with the electrical outlets in the walls.

Daryl and Beth made a run to the dollar store again and they found a gate to put at the top of the stairs so the baby wouldn't topple down and she also got foam to tape around the sharp corners of furniture so when Judith stumbled, she wouldn't hurt herself.

Seeing Judith walk and get bigger with each day made them all happy in a way nothing else did. The world may have ended but it was still turning. Things still kept going and sometimes, most times, they all forgot that.

The first snow came – soft and light, flurries blowing in the wind and never actually seeming to stick to anything. Daryl was on watch that night when it came and Beth laughed, feeling light, and she stood from the steps to stand beneath the black sky, her face tilted up and feeling the wet flakes touch her cheeks.

"I think it's around my birthday," she then said as she sat back down next to him, his eyes having intently been watching her and now, focused solely on her. "My birthday was in the winter." She sighed then, a smile still on her face, and she rested her head on his shoulder.

The next night, as they laid on their bed, Daryl reached into his nearby pack and pulled out something, the plastic crinkling in his fingers. She gasped when she saw what he was offering. A pack of two Twinkies. She took it eagerly and looked at him for an explanation.

"Birthday present," he said in his grunt and she held the treat to her chest as if it was gold.

She leaned in and with her other hand on his cheek, she kissed him. Slow and soft and she took her time, her lips moving against his. He responded, kissing her just as slowly, and she felt like shivering as she felt his fingers in her hair, cradling her head. She found herself being lowered onto her back and she set the Twinkies aside so she could slide both of her arms around him. His body was on top of hers – heavy and warm - and she held him to his spot, never wanting him to move.

She didn't know how long they kissed and it never went further than that. Just kisses and soft moans and breathless whispers of his name. His lips pressed kisses to her throat and he sucked on a patch of skin that left her arching her back and gasping. She wanted to tell him that she loved him but she bit down on her lip and closed her eyes as his lips brushed along the line of her jaw. She knew if she said that, he would stop and pull away and she never wanted him to go where she couldn't reach him.

Her skin was tingling as if she could feel a gentle current of electricity flowing through her and her fingers ran through his hair, tugging on strands, as he pressed his lips to hers again. They were both out of breath but even then, they both seemed reluctant to end the kiss.

Only when her hands began to slid up his shirt, fingertips starting to creep up his back, did he tense on top of her and quickly pulled himself up. She looked at him, confused, and he looked away from her, panting, his fingers curled into fists.

"I'm sorry-" she began to apologize though she wasn't entirely sure what had happened.

He cut her off with a quick shake of his head. He then looked at her. He looked at her with dark eyes and he looked at nothing else. She slowly sat up and didn't say anything either and she kept her eyes trained on him as well. And then, as if he had come to a silent decision with himself, Beth watched as he grabbed his shirt and pulled it off. She had never seen him without a shirt on. He had always been so careful to keep himself always covered.

He took a deep breath and in the flickering flame of the vanilla candle, she could see what he always hid. His back was covered in scars – thick dark lashes, obviously old and put there long ago – but the damage would always remain, both in and out. She knew now why he read that book and highlighted things with the utmost concentration.

He looked at her then and she looked at him. He told her then, in gruff short sentences of what had happened. Of his dad and a belt and trying to hide in the closet but always being found. Of his mom dying and Merle being gone and how it was just him and his dad and this is what happened to him.

She listened to every word he said and she felt as if she was holding her breath the entire time. She had suspected but she had never known and when he was finished, he told her that she was the only one now who knew everything.

She leaned into him then and kissed him softly on the lips. "I love you," she whispered to him even though she knew he never wanted to hear that but it was so true. In that moment and all of the moments leading up to it.

She didn't pity him and she knew he didn't want her to. He didn't want it or need it. She was sad, yes, but everything that had happened to him had forged him into this man he was now and he truly was the best man she knew. She wondered if she would ever get him to believe that himself.

And then, she looked at him and he looked at her and he seemed to know what she wanted to do. She hesitated, waiting for him to stop her, but he didn't. She moved slowly, still giving him a chance. He stiffened the first time her lips touched his back but he still didn't stop her. She felt him hold his breath the entire time as she moved her lips from scar to scar, closing her eyes and breathing him in and her arms sliding around his hips, hugging him from behind.

Even with everything they had already been through together, she had never felt closer to him than she did in that moment.

And when she pulled back and gave him a small, faint smile, he stared at her and his hand lifted to her cheek, his lips going to her own scar.

They made another run up the road to Milton's and this time, Rick came with them. Together, the two of them looked over the collection of seeds that the store had sold while Daryl helped himself to a pack of cigarettes he found in the desk drawer in the back office. Looking at the seeds with Rick secretly elated her. If they were going to be planting these, that meant that Rick was thinking about staying here longer than the winter.

They broke apart, Rick heading back to the station and Daryl and Beth heading into the woods, hoping to track a couple of rabbits since Carol had mentioned having a taste for stew on this cold winter day. They walked quietly but she felt Daryl looking over at her time and time again and finally, she looked at him, laughing a little.

"Do I have something on my face?" She asked and her cheeks felt warm.

He smirked a little and shook his head. "Not yet."

And before she could ask what he meant, he leaned into her then, kissing her. Daryl rarely initiated a kiss between them and Beth felt herself reacting immediately. She stood on her toes with her arms around him and her lips hard against his. His hand not holding his crossbow rested on her hip and then slowly slid around to the small of her back, holding her as close to him as he could.

He pulled his lips away slowly, almost looking reluctant to do so. "We should get goin'. You moanin' is probably scarin' away all of the game," he teased her then.

"Stop making me moan then," she quipped back.

He smirked at that but didn't say anything else and they resumed their hunt.

They were only able to get one rabbit and Daryl stored it into the pack on her back. They began heading back towards the station and Beth felt so happy with him in the woods that late morning, she began humming a soft song.

As they neared the station, they heard voices that made Daryl raise his crossbow a bit in preparation.

"Is that…" Beth looked ahead at the entrance in the gate.

There were two figures and Rick was talking with them both. Daryl stopped walking so she stopped walking, too, and she squinted her eyes to try and see who those people were. Were they strangers? They were so hidden up here, how had anyone found them? She instantly felt a knot in her stomach at the prospect of others being able to know where they were. People were more dangerous than the walkers nowadays.

She looked harder and then gasped. Her eyes flew up to Daryl but he was silent, standing there, but she saw his jaw was clenched so tightly, muscles were twitching in his face. She looked back towards the two figures and her brain confirmed what her eyes had seen.

Those weren't two strangers. It was Glenn and Maggie. They had found them. They had come back.

Beth felt herself take a step forward but then she stopped herself suddenly. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she felt tears inexplicably burn in the backs of her eyes. Maggie was here. Her sister was here again.

And Beth realized that all she wanted to do was go back into the woods with Daryl and not come back.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	15. Chapter 15

**Thank you for the reviews of the last chapter. I hope this one is as well liked! And just a quick note - I'm not the biggest fan of Maggie at the moment and I find that she and Glenn have just become very boring characters. **

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Fifteen. **

Daryl did nothing but watch Beth.

Maggie had looked as he and Beth approached and surprise and shock and happiness and a thousand other things flooded her face before she burst into tears and threw her arms around Beth, blubbering about how happy she was to see her back. Daryl had clenched his jaw to keep from snapping at her that she would have seen her sooner if she hadn't just taken off but he kept silent and just watched Beth.

She hadn't said a word and had only patted Maggie's back rather than hug her fully but Maggie didn't seem to notice. Glenn then hugged her next and Daryl noticed how stiff Beth was in his embrace. Didn't anyone else notice? Why was he the only one who was noticing how distant she was acting from both of them?

In the station, everyone welcomed them, hugging Maggie and Glenn and acting like two fucking heroes had just returned. Daryl knew he stood there with his usual frown but he didn't care. He wasn't going to act happy with their arrival when he wasn't. He kept watching Beth as she stood there, looking dazed. Maggie hugged her again and was telling Beth how worried she had been. Daryl didn't try to hide his snort of disbelief at that.

His eyes never left Beth. She was starting to breathe a little heavier. Even standing a distance away from her, he could see it start to happen; see her chest start to rapidly inhale and exhale. He had noticed it a few times before – like when Carl had found those lollipops in that store and she had thrown up at the sight of them. Daryl still didn't know the story about those but she had started to breathe heavier then, too, as if she couldn't breathe at all and gasped for air.

And again, no one seemed to notice as they all listened to Maggie and Glenn. Something about Eugene not really being a scientist and there being no cure – no shit – and Abraham had killed him in his rage before walking off and they hadn't seen him since. Rosita and Tara had been with them but there had been a few walker attacks and neither of them had made it. Since then, they had just been walking with no way of knowing where the rest of the group had gone and by chance, when Maggie saw this road, she told Glenn that there might be a few places up there.

When Daryl heard that, he was a little surprised until he remembered that Maggie was a country girl, too.

And now here they were and they were so happy to see them all and Maggie slid her arm around Beth's shoulders, telling Beth how happy she was to see her, still not noticing that Beth was gasping for air.

Daryl stalked over to the counter and went to the shelves were their things were kept. He grabbed the duffel bag with the tent, the hatchet and his extra knife. He then went to Carol, his fingers curling around her arm and gently tugging her away from the others.

"Goin' huntin' for a couple days. Can you get some food together for us?" Daryl asked and Carol didn't ask him as to who the _us_ was. She just nodded and headed for the stairs.

He then finally went up to Beth, Maggie's arm still around her, and when Beth saw him, her blank eyes were flooded with relief. He didn't say anything. He just handed over the duffel bag. She still had her pack on her back and she slung the bag on as well. He handed her the hatchet next, watching as she hooked it through one of the loops of her jeans.

"Beth?" Maggie asked, confused.

Beth didn't answer though. She looked up at Daryl and he gave a slight nod. He then looked to Rick who was standing next to Glenn and he didn't look surprised at all.

"Goin' huntin'," he spoke to everyone but looking at Rick.

Rick nodded and didn't say anything.

"With Beth?" Maggie's brow furrowed. "We just got back. She can stay."

"Can't hunt without her," he shrugged, making sure Maggie could tell that he didn't give a shit that she just got back. "And if you wanted to see her sooner, you shouldn't of left," he said, staring at Maggie as she stared at him, her eyes slightly wide at his comment.

Maggie opened her mouth and then closed it and then opened it again, looking like a fish hooked on a line, trying to gasp some last breaths. He was aware the others were looking at them but he didn't really care about that either. He didn't care about much of anything right now except getting Beth out of there.

"Beth?" Maggie was finally able to say something, looking to her younger sister.

Beth was gone though. Daryl could tell. He looked at her and saw that all-too familiar expression she had had when she first got back. She was there but she wasn't there at all.

He shifted the crossbow strap onto his shoulder. "Ready?" He asked her in a low voice.

She nodded, looking up at him, her face still blank. He then remembered something and reached into Beth's pack, pulling out the rabbit they had caught just a bit earlier. Carol was returning with a bag of food and she and Daryl switched. He put the food into Beth's pack and zipped it shut.

"I packed enough for three days," she told them both.

"Thanks," Daryl nodded and looked back to Beth. His fingers gently curved around her elbow and he didn't say anything else as he guided her out the door. He heard Maggie say Beth's name again but this time, Glenn stopped her.

Out on the porch, he looked at Beth as she began gasping then, her chest heaving up and down as she tried her hardest to inhale and exhale. Daryl watched and had absolutely no idea what to do. He wondered if he was supposed to just stand there and wait for this to pass as her struggle to breathe made his ears ache.

Beth stepped away from him, still gasping, and he saw the tears stinging her eyes. He stood there and waited and didn't say anything. He stood there and felt like an idiot because he felt like he knew what he should know what to do for her but he could only stand there and do nothing. He knew the others in the station were watching them through the windows and he tried counting the seconds down until Beth finally seemed to be breathing again.

She didn't look at him as she went down the steps of the porch, wiping her nose with the back of her hand. He followed after her and they stepped through the gate, closing it behind them again and once they were outside the fence and the station was behind him, he looked at her as she took a deep breath.

He wanted to ask if she was alright but that was a stupid question and he could just imagine the look she would give him. So instead, they walked across the road and into the woods and they didn't say a word. They walked for a couple of miles without saying anything and he normally wouldn't mind. In their time together, just the two of them, Beth had learned how to be quiet. She had still liked to be chatty and Daryl would feel his mind fog over with how much she liked to talk but she learned when it was a time to talk and when it wasn't.

He walked now beside her, his crossbow in his hands, and he would look to her occasionally but she didn't look at him. From just her profile, he could see she was still blank and he wanted her to talk; wanted to talk to her but he still didn't know what to say.

He looked down to the ground instead to see where they were walking. He wished it was warmer out so plants would be sprouting and he could show her something. Before she had gotten taken, he had been showing her mushrooms and berries and which were safe to eat. Now, there was nothing and the one topic he could talk about was nonexistent.

He stopped and Beth, aware of his movements, stopped too, looking at him. "Let's stop here," he told her, already taking off his pack.

"Here?" She frowned at that, looking around. "But it's still so early."

He shrugged. "Wanna get camp set up before dark. Plenty of tracks around here, too, for us to follow," he said.

Beth seemed to pause for another moment before she slowly took her pack off, too. He took the duffel bag from her and began setting up the tent as she took the cans and string he kept in his own pack, never knowing when he would be needing an alarm system. She made a small perimeter around the camp and by the time she was done, the tent was set up.

He expected her to start a fire. Instead, she unzipped the flap of the tent and taking her pack with her, she crawled in. She sat and looked up at him and she didn't need him to ask. Taking his own pack and crossbow, he crawled into the tent after her and zipped up the flap. And with him inside now with her, she seemed to let out a soft sigh of relief and she laid back, using her pack as a pillow. She still didn't say anything and once again, he found himself short of knowledge of what to say to her.

He took a small stone from his pack and his hunting knife from the sheath at his waist and began sharpening it, looking at Beth occasionally but she was doing nothing except staring up at the top of the tent. At least she was still breathing normally and that was all that mattered to him right now.

"She didn't ask about my scar," Beth spoke up suddenly. "She didn't even seem to see it."

Daryl shrugged and kept sharpening. "Maybe she didn' wanna see it."

"Maybe," she shrugged her own shoulders. "She abandoned me. I may not have been here but you were here, looking for me, and she just left." Daryl didn't say anything, knowing that right now, she was just talking out loud to sort out her thoughts. "I'm not going to act like I'm happy to see her when I'm not. I'm really not. I know life is too short to be angry or be upset. Daddy always said we don't get to be upset. But I am upset and I can't help it." Beth turned her head and looked at him and he paused in his sharpening. "And did you see the way everyone greeted her? They were all so happy. Finally. The useful sister."

"You ain't useless, Beth," he said quietly.

She laughed at that and it was short and hollow-sounding. "Yes, I am, Daryl. I'm the perfect girl to have around if you want a clean pair of socks or a song sung but anything more than that, you'd be best going to Maggie for it."

Daryl blew out a stream of air. "Last time I checked, Maggie didn't fight her way out of a hospital run by psychos."

"Maggie wouldn't have let herself be taken in the first place. You think they would have ever been able to get her in that car? And if they did, you think she would have let herself be beaten and raped by them?" Beth asked him, staring at him as she spoke the words.

He stared at her and he didn't know what to say to that but he knew he had to say something. "After the fall of the prison, you kept me alive," he then said softly. He was looking down, sharpening his knife again but he could feel Beth looking at him. "You don't think so but after we ran and I thought everyone was dead, if you hadn' been there, I probably just would have ended it all."

"You wouldn't have done that, Daryl," she said softly, shaking her head, sitting up. "You're too strong for that."

"Maybe I am, maybe I ain't," he shrugged and looked at her. "All I know is I looked at you and knew I had to stay alive to keep you safe."

"And you did. I wouldn't have made if I hadn't been with you." She reached out then and her hand touched his cheek. "Everyone knows I'm here because of you."

He shook his head at that. "You're here 'cause of you."

He didn't get why she didn't believe that. She had gotten herself out of that hospital. Not him. She had been the one to save herself and he didn't like when she put her survival all on him. It was bullshit. She was strong and brave and anyone who didn't get that about Beth Greene was a fucking idiot immediately on his shit list.

Beth leaned into him then and he didn't stop her. She pressed her lips gently to his once and then twice and her other hand lifted to his other cheek, cupping his face. Everything about her was soft and gentle and Daryl was still getting used to it. He wasn't used to anything being like that in his life before Beth started kissing him. And every time they kissed and touched, he knew it was something he did want to get used to.

He slowly felt himself pushing her backwards until she was lying down and he was on top of her. He couldn't stop his lips from being on hers. She tasted sweet and smelled like vanilla and he smelled like dirt and blood and why was she letting him on top of her like this? But as if she read his mind, her arms slipped around his waist, holding him close, not letting him pull himself away from her.

They kissed until they couldn't breathe and even then, he was reluctant to pull his lips from hers. He felt the blood pumping through every vein in his body and he nearly began to shake. Beth lifted her head and pressed her lips to his again as he felt her fingers glide down the front of his body to the button of his dirty jeans.

"Beth." He froze.

She looked at him and didn't say anything and he didn't think she would. But then she moved her hands to either side of his neck, her thumbs running along his jaw. "The first time with Zack was terrible. A girl's first time usually is," she said softly. "And then, the other times after that…" she trailed off and he saw her swallow as her mind slipped momentarily into a dark place before he could pull her back. But then she looked back into his eyes and he saw that she was back with him. "I want a good memory, Daryl. A good experience. And I want that with you."

He didn't say anything and he stared down at her, not too sure what to say. He never knew what to say with her. He always felt she was a dozen steps ahead and he was stumbling to keep up.

"You're upset 'bout Maggie bein' back," he shook his head.

"I am but her and this with you have nothing to do with one another," she said softly, her eyes locked with his. Her hands then slipped down and ran down his chest and back to the top of his jeans.

"It ain't right," he shook his head, trying to convince himself as much as her.

"Why not?" Her brow furrowed.

He struggled to respond. There were a thousand reasons as to why this wasn't right between them. Weren't there? There had to be. He just couldn't seem to think of any at that exact moment.

He looked down at her, her blonde hair spilled around, her too big blue eyes looking up at him, the pale pinkness and slight swelling of her lips from his kisses. She was pretty. Beautiful. Too damn beautiful for this world now and lying in a tent with a guy like him.

But he wanted her. He couldn't deny that. He had wanted her since that night in the funeral home when she looked at him with candle flames flickering in her eyes and that damn _oh_.

He didn't say anything. Instead, he pushed himself up on his knees and he lifted her foot, taking her boot off and then the other foot, taking that boot off, too. They wouldn't be able to get undressed. It was too risky out here like this to get completely naked and Beth understood, unbuttoning her own jeans and he watched as her hips wiggled as she pushed those and her underwear down her legs, kicking them off of on, leaving them on the other.

He felt his mouth go completely dry as he looked at her, completely exposed from the waist down. She was so damn pale and he couldn't help but brush his fingertips across her stomach, making goosebumps flesh across her skin. And she was so damn soft everywhere, too. He looked at his dirty hands touching her and he lifted his eyes to her face, seeing her watching him, her cheeks flushed and a shy smile across her face. He bent down and pressed a kiss to her stomach, right beneath her bellybutton, surprising them both, listening to her gasp.

He sat up again and he unbuttoned his own jeans, pushing them and his boxers down past his hips. Beth watched him, her bottom lip between her teeth but a smile pulling at the corners of her mouth and seeing it, he felt his stomach clench. She really wanted this. He couldn't understand that but he knew he wasn't imagining it.

Her hands reached for him and she tugged him down on top of her, her lips meeting his, her mouth instantly opening against his. He felt the softness of her thighs against his hips and his fingers now gripped her hip.

"I've only done this one other time," he then told her, puffs of air against her lips as he breathed rapidly. "My eighteenth birthday, Merle took me to a strip club. Went into a back room with a girl and she bounced on my dick a few times and that was it."

"So romantic," Beth smiled, her eyes laughing, and he felt himself smirk.

"I just never wanted it," he suddenly felt embarrassed. "Didn' like anyone gettin' too close."

Beth's fingers slowly tunneled through his hair and then she was kissing him softly and he knew she got it; knew what he was telling her, and he felt his embarrassment slip away and it was replaced with nothing but heat.

They both knew he didn't have a condom but Beth didn't show her concern about the lack of protection and she spread her legs a little wider for him. He reached a hand between them, gripping himself, guiding himself into her opening. He pushed forward slowly, not wanting to rush, remembering her words. She wanted a good experience and she had already been hurt too much doing this. He watched her face as her eyes fluttered closed and she bit on her bottom lip again, a soft moan rising from her throat. He felt her body part for him as he sank inside of her and he had to bite the inside of his cheek as he felt her. So tight and wet and he dropped his head down to her shoulder, letting out a soft groan.

When he was completely inside and their hips met, he forced himself to stay still for a moment. She was breathing a bit heavier and her hands had slipped up his shirt, fingers splayed across his back, gripping his skin. He squeezed his eyes shut and felt himself start to shake from trying to keep himself from moving. But then her lips brushed across his ear and she whispered his name and he knew it was alright.

He began to move, pulling back and then thrusting forward, a slow gentle pace, watching her face and listening to every soft moan she made. Her inner thighs rubbed against his hips as he pumped between them and her fingers clutched as his back, over his scars. He lowered his head and kissed her, slanting his mouth over hers and kissing her deeply as she moaned against him. He pulled his lips back then so they could both breathe and he admitted that he liked hearing her moan his name softly out into their tent.

He pressed his forehead to the side of her throat, panting as he sped up just a bit, listening to the hitch in her breath as he did. She squeezed herself around him and he groaned her name. She was so tight and he was close. Could feel it building and his stomach began to clench. He couldn't help it and he couldn't stop it and he quickly pushed himself to his knees, pulling himself from her. It only took a few strokes and then he came, spurting onto her stomach and pelvis.

It was quiet in the moments after except for their heaving breathing. Daryl looked down at her, bracing himself for a hint of regret but Beth's eyes were closed and when she opened them again, she looked immediately at him and smiled.

He took the rag from his jeans and cleaned himself from her skin. "Sorry," he muttered.

She shook her head. "Thank you," she then said softly. "We're going to have to get some condoms," she then said, surprising him.

"We're doin' this again?" He didn't mean to ask sounding so surprised but he did anyway.

"Don't you want to?" She asked him.

He tossed the rag aside and pulled his boxers and jeans back up, zipping and buttoning them again. "Yeah," he said softly and she looked relieved at that, as if she had been bracing herself for another answer from him.

She sat up then, too, and her hands slid behind his neck, fingers linking together, and she pulled his lips down to hers. He was more than willing to kiss her, a hand curving around the back of her neck, and he felt her smiling against his lips.

When he pulled away, he felt himself almost smiling, too. "M'starvin'" he said and she laughed at that, shaking her head.

She pulled her underwear and jeans back on and grabbed her boots, tugging those on, as Daryl pulled her pack over, looking inside to see what Carol had packed for them. She laid down again, her head using his pack this time for a pillow, and he looked at her.

"You okay?" He asked her softly.

She nodded and smiled at him. "Definitely." She reached her fingers out and brushed them against his knee. "Did Carol pack anything good?" She asked.

"We'll go huntin' in a little bit," he said. "Have a side of rabbit or somethin' with these beans. You okay?" He asked again. "I didn'… I didn' hurt you or nothin'?"

She smiled and it grew a little wider. "Did I hurt you?"

He smirked a little and shook his head. "You'd be the only one able to," he said. "But nah. You didn't hurt me this time."

She laughed softly and sat up. "You didn't hurt me either. It was the best." She leaned in and kissed him at the corner of his lips. "Thank you," she whispered.

He looked at her and he wondered how the next few days in the woods with her and just her would go for them. "You don't have to thank me, Beth," he told her softly and then he felt a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Less you plan on leavin' me some money in my pack," he said and a small smile broke through when she began to laugh.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	16. Chapter 16

**Thank you to everyone who read the last chapter and understood that neither Daryl and Beth are experts at what they are doing. They are awkward and learning and this is a zombie apocalypse. It's not going to be overly romantic either. And with saying that, this story will either be eighteen chapters or twenty. I'm still making a few changes to my outline so I can't be too sure at the moment. **

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Sixteen.**

She thought of the first time she ever saw Daryl Dixon.

Riding up to her family's farm on his motorcycle, he had both intimidated her and frightened her. And then, when the farm fell and they all ran and spent the winter bouncing from one place to another, she was no longer afraid of him but she remained intimidated. She never spoke to him and she didn't think he even knew her name but then Lori died and Judith was born and Daryl had said her name, pulling her aside and telling her to look out for Carl. It was the first time he had ever directly spoken to her and it had made her feel nervous to have him so close.

If only the then-her could see the now-her, lying with Daryl Dixon in a small tent in the middle of the woods, her head on his chest and his arm slung around her waist as he slept. She listened to his steady inhale and exhale, soft and deep, and it was the only sound she could hear. The rest of the world was quiet. The cans of their alarm system laid strung outside, undisturbed, and it was as if they were all alone in the whole of the world.

They had gone hunting and had tracked a rabbit which Daryl then brought back to skin and clean while she built their fire. She wasn't sure what she had been expecting. Perhaps some awkwardness or Daryl going all quiet and uncomfortable. But that hadn't happened. They fell back into the their routines that they always had when hunting and camping together.

After they ate, Daryl double-checked their alarm system and they both went into the tent. She hadn't been sure what she was expecting either when they were back in there but she was pleasantly surprised when Daryl had kissed her first.

They kissed and touched one another and he used his fingers to reach into her blue jeans and give her the first orgasm she had ever had. She had definitely not had one her first time with Zack and it had never been about sex or pleasure in the hospital but with Daryl, she felt as if being with him was her true first time. He erased every painful time before this time with him in their tent. They were a bit awkward and bumbling, neither the expert but they let their instincts guide them and when he made her come, she cried out and both looked equally surprised.

And now, he slept and Beth watched him. She didn't think of anything. Not the station or what they would do when winter passed. She didn't think of the hospital or what had happened there to her. Not of her sister or any of the other people in their family. She had so much she think about but her mind was blanketed in a pleasant fog as she watched him. She smiled faintly as she thought of it being just the two of them out in the woods for the next few days. Just like it used to be before that funeral home.

She couldn't resist tilting her head up now and brushing her lips across Daryl's cheek. She wasn't surprised when his eyelids fluttered open. He was always such a light sleeper.

He looked at her, his eyes cloudy yet alert. "What?" He asked, his voice rough and low.

She smiled faintly and shook her head. "I'm sorry I woke you. I couldn't help myself."

He grunted something but didn't say anything else and his eyes fell shut. She smiled, shifting herself closer and feeling suddenly so brave, she moved her hand down low on his stomach, her finger tracing the waistband of his jeans. She felt his stomach suck in at her touch and his eyes opened again. She felt her cheeks warm in a blush when he stared at her, his hand reached down and grasping hers.

"Whatcha doin'?" He asked.

She shrugged but didn't answer because she wasn't entirely sure how. She felt silly and she wondered if she was annoying him but she couldn't see a hint of that on his face. His eyes were dark and intent, just staring at her, clearing waiting to see what she was going to do.

"I don't know. I just like touching you," she whispered and found that she was having a problem meeting his eyes which seemed so ridiculous to her. This man had been inside of her, his fingers had been inside of her. Why would she feel embarrassed around him?

Daryl didn't say anything and she felt his eyes set on her. Slowly, she lifted her eyes to him.

"You regrettin' it?" He asked in his own soft voice.

Her eyes widened. "What? No! Not at all," she shook her head vehemently. "I'm not acting like I'm regretting it, am I?"

He shrugged a shoulder. "Just wanted to make sure. Wanted to make sure I didn't pressure you into anythin'."

That made her smile faintly. "Daryl, if there was any pressure, it was me pressuring you. Do _you_ regret it?"

He shook his head. "'Course not."

He was quiet after that and kept staring at her and she hated how there were some times, she was able to read him and then other times, he completely alluded her. No matter how much he opened himself up to her, she felt as if she would never know every bit of him.

She pressed herself against him, wanting to be closer, wanting to be as close to him as she could, seeking that warmth and that safety she always had with him. And he lifted his arm from her waist and wrapped it around her neck, tugging her upwards until her lips were within reach. He kissed her then and she sank contently against him, a hand lifting to rest on his cheek. They kissed leisurely, lazily, their lips taking the time to taste one another.

She felt a tugging in her stomach and she tried to get closer to him and Daryl seemed to understand her problem. He rolled them over then, placing her on her back and his body above hers and she smiled for a moment against his lips before slipping her hands over her shoulders and pulling him down completely, melting beneath him.

She felt his hand running down her side, heard herself moan and whisper his name, felt him press down against her harder. Neither were still too sure as to what they were doing but already, they were getting there. Outside of the tent, they moved as partners, knowing what the other was going to do – a fine-tuned dance they had practiced and honed during their time alone together away from the others. And inside of the tent, she knew they would reach that point with one another, too.

Daryl slowly pulled his lips back and her eyes fluttered open to find him looking down at her. She gave him a small smile and the corner of his mouth twitched in a smile of his own. He shifted and her arms slipped around his waist, holding him where he was. He gave her a curious look and she smiled, cheeks blushing.

"I like you on top of me," she admitted.

"Don't wanna crush you," he said but he remained on top of her, distributing his weight out evenly and she smiled up at him at the effort he was making, obviously honestly worried about crushing her right there.

For a few passing minutes, neither of them said anything. They looked at one another, her fingertips lightly touching the skin of his neck, brushing hair from his eye, rubbing a thumb along his jaw. He moved his hand and his thumb lightly ran along her scar on her cheek.

"I woke up with it," she told him.

He looked at it rather than her eyes. "Didn' have it with you when you ran out."

She nodded, having remembered that, too. They must have hit her to get her into the car. She still couldn't remember that. She remembered running out of the funeral home after telling Daryl she wasn't going to leave him and then remembered waking up in the hospital but everything between was just a stretching blank blackness.

"I wish we could stay out here," she said softly, steering the conversation somewhere else.

He looked at her for a moment. "We could," he answered slowly. "We go back, get our stuff, tell Rick what we're doin'."

She smiled a little. "It wouldn't be safe."

"No where's safe," he said.

"You don't think the station is safe?" She asked. It was the first time he had mentioned that.

He shrugged and his thumb was still running along her scar. "Safe enough. We could make it safe here, too. 'Course, no one wants to spend their life staring into a fire and eatin' snake."

She giggled softly at that. "I happen to like snake." He nodded and she wasn't surprised. Of course he would know that. "Could you imagine everyone's reactions if we told them we were going to live out in the woods in our tent?"

He smirked a little and shrugged again. "Ain't like they couldn' visit us," he said and she felt like giggling again.

It was such a ridiculous idea and yet, it was something she wanted badly. So badly. Just the two of them and this tent and the woods. She had hated it so much when she had first been thrust into such a life with him. Hated the woods and the snake and the dirt and sweat; hated him. She had been so desperate to find someone else so it wouldn't be just him and her for the rest of her life.

But then, as things tended to do, it all began to change. They ran from walkers and got drunk and argued and talked and burned down a house together. She knew it would be impossible for things _not_ to change after going through all of these things together.

And they still were looking for the others and yet, Beth had accepted the fact that it was very much just her and Daryl and maybe it always would be. She felt something shift between them and the way she caught him looking at her sometimes, she knew he felt it, too. She didn't know what it meant or what it might lead to – if it led to anything – but before she could ask him about it or possibly explore it further, she was taken from him.

Being back, even with the others, it was still just her and Daryl.

He slowly slid off of her, laying down on his side, facing her, at her side. He bent his arm beneath his head and his other arm, he draped almost hesitantly across her middle. She turned her head towards him and smiled faintly to let him know that she liked that.

"We would have to move closer to the stream," she said and he nodded in agreement, his blinks becoming longer and he was fighting to keep his eyes open. "Go to sleep, Daryl," she told him softly, her hand resting on his arm.

And as if he was waiting for her to say that, his eyes fell shut and didn't open again and within mere seconds, she could hear his breathing drop off, falling asleep almost immediately. She shifted closer to him and closed her own eyes, listening to the still quiet night on the other side of their tent. No shuffling in the leaves or banging of cans. It was just him and her in this tent in the middle of the woods on a mountain somewhere. Just him and her in the world.

Beth slowly felt herself follow him into slumber, dropping off and drifting asleep, and feeling his warm breath on her cheek made her feel safe and warm for the entire night.

…

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><p>They spent the next day exploring the woods more. They didn't focus too much on hunting though Daryl occasionally shot his bow at a squirrel and Beth stored them in her pack. The mountain hadn't seemed that big when they had first approached it in their car with Michonne that day they were scouting for places but the more she and Daryl walked, the more Beth realized that the group was occupying just one very small space on a mountain that went up much higher than they ever thought.<p>

"Must be more further up in the state than we thought," Daryl said as he stepped over a fallen decaying log.

"Think this might be part of the North Mountains?" Beth asked, carefully stepping onto the log and then over it, Daryl watching her to make sure she made it over.

"Might be," he shrugged. "Never been this far north."

"Maybe we'll be able to get you out of Georgia after all," she smiled.

"Thought you wanted to stay here," he said.

"I do. But that doesn't mean we can't go to the border for a visit," she said. "It can be a vacation. Kill two birds with one stone."

He didn't say anything to that, his eyes sharp as he looked around where they were walking. Beth looked, too, wanting to see what he saw, wanting to keep her skills sharp and develop them so they could be more on his level. She knew the world would never right itself again. It would never be as it was but if there was the slim possibility of it actually happening, she wondered if it would matter to her. She wondered if she and Daryl could just stay on this mountain and keep living a quiet, simple life. Would he want to have that kind of life with her?

She looked at him as they walked, wanting to ask the question but not wanting to ask it and hear his answer. She knew it wasn't a very important question because things weren't different and they weren't going to be. This is how things were and always would be and this was how she and Daryl were living now. Nothing else besides that mattered much.

She felt the air change around her suddenly and she looked to Daryl, wondering if he felt the same tickle on the back of his neck that she felt on hers. And the way he tensed slightly and raised his bow, she knew he had.

She fell absolutely silent, holding her breath, trying to keep her heart from pounding so quickly against her ribs. Daryl looked at her and put a finger to his lips as if he had to tell her to be quiet and she nodded quickly before he crouched down slightly and crept forward, Beth staying right behind him, pulling her knife from the sheath. She didn't know what she had felt but she had learned with her time with Daryl not to question her instincts. He told her that out here, sometimes, instinct is all they had to go on and they were rarely, if ever, wrong about things.

He pressed himself against behind one tree and she pressed herself behind another and they both heard the slow shuffling and the soft growling of the way all walkers breathed. She perked her ears, trying to figure out how many there were, and she looked over at Daryl, seeing that he had poked his head out cautiously before pulling it back. He looked at her and held up five fingers and she nodded, her fingers clutched around the knife handle.

Daryl stepped out suddenly and shot the bow, the bolt landing in the skull of one walker. Beth followed him out, her blade finding the head of another. They killed the walkers out easily enough and she was left standing there, slighting out of breath and smiling a little. Daryl collected his bolts, loading them back onto the crossbow, and he looked at Beth, smiling a little in return when he saw hers.

"Kind of turns me on," she then joked – though not really – and she almost laughed at the surprise clear on his face from her comment.

He then smirked a little and shook his head. "Come on. Let's keep goin'."

She laughed softly and followed after him. "Where did they come from? I thought walkers, in the words of Daryl Dixon, couldn't climb for shit."

"Probably from there," he said, jerking his chin towards a building off in the trees she was just now noticing. As they got closer, she saw it wasn't a building but more like a ramshackle house – sort of like the one they had burned down all of those weeks ago.

They didn't stop to look through it and continued walking, slowly heading back in the direction of where they were camped, Daryl shooting a couple more squirrels along the way. Soft flurries of snow began to fall from the low grey clouds overhead and Beth titled her head up, sticking her tongue out of habit to try and catch a few.

"Hope it picks up a little. Snow's nothin' but good for us," Daryl said. She looked at him and listened. Another Daryl Dixon survival lesson. And he seemed to know she wanted more explained. "Snow's pure. Dependin' on how much we get, we can gather it up and boil it down and get some clean fresh water," he said.

Beth shook her head. "I, sometimes, feel like such an idiot," she confessed. Daryl looked at her and it was obvious he was surprised with her comment. "Some of what you teach me, it's so _obvious_, you know? Like, of course snow would give clean water. I should know that."

He shrugged. "Your mind just ain't used to thinkin' like that yet. It'll get there."

She stepped closer to him. "Yeah?" She smiled faintly at how much confidence he showed in her and it made her stomach churn.

"Yeah," he nodded. He then looked at her. "If I'm the last man standin', you'll be the last woman," he said.

Back at their camp, Beth began another fire and she then sat, watching Daryl clean the squirrels. She knew it was something else she had to learn but she didn't know yet if she had the stomach for it. Right now, she would just let Daryl do it.

They roasted the squirrel meat over the flame and ate a can of mixed vegetables and after they ate and were full enough, they both slipped into the tent, the snow falling steadily, still light but now starting to stick to the ground.

"One more day of huntin," he said. "We'll head back the day after that. Get some meat to bring back to everyone."

She nodded in agreement. "I'm surprised Maggie hasn't come looking for me," she slipped between the blankets, shivering a little.

"Hopefully, Rick or someone would have told her that would be stupid," Daryl said, flopping down on his back next to her and she threw one of the blankets over him. He looked at her. "We still gonna be sleepin' where we've been sleepin' when we get back?" He asked.

"Of course," he brow furrowed. "Why wouldn't we?"

He shrugged and looked back up to the top of the tent though it was obvious he had asked that question for a reason. She laid quietly and looked at him and waited for him to continue. A few minutes passed before he did.

"Just didn' know if you wanted your sister to know about this," he said.

"Everyone else already knows for the most part. Maggie will figure it out, too," Beth replied.

"Think she'll start some shit?" Daryl looked at her again, his face and eyes both blank.

"She probably will," she saw no reason to deny it. Maggie would try to act like the older overprotective sister even if she was completely wrong for it and Beth didn't need her to do that for her anymore over anything. "I do have to talk to her when we get back. There's a lot of stuff we have to talk about."

He nodded but didn't say anything else.

They were both quiet, both lost in their own thoughts. She thought about Maggie and what she would say to her when she and Daryl got back. There was so much to say and talk about and she wasn't sure, even after all of the words were said, if things could get return to normal between her and Maggie. Maggie was her sister, yes, and she always would be and she was the only blood family Beth had left but too much had happened since the fall of the prison, since they had last seen one another, and Beth knew she wasn't the same person she was before. Maybe Maggie wasn't either.

She hated herself for the comparison and she tried to stop herself from making it but she couldn't help herself. Maggie thought she was weak just like the guards in the hospital had. They never expected anything from her. They saw the scar on her wrist and all knew what it was from and just assumed that she was still that weak scared girl from the farm, not having the strength to be able to survive in this world.

But she was here. She was still here and she would keep still being here and she wanted to make Daryl's words be true. She wanted to make it.

She shivered a little then beneath her blankets, earning Daryl's attention.

"Cold?" He asked.

She nodded. "Aren't you?"

He shrugged. "Used to it, I guess." He then opened his arms and pulled her to him, she smiling as his arms engulfed her and held her close.

"I love you," she whispered and it was the first time she had said it in such a long time and she wasn't sure how he would react to those words now after even more had happened between them. Not just having sex but him telling her about his scars and sharing parts of themselves with the other that no one else knew.

He didn't say anything, not that she was waiting for him to, but she felt his arms tighten just a bit more around her and she smiled because that was the best reaction he could give her.

She slowly trailed her hand up to the side of his neck and tilted her head up, looking at him. She didn't say anything but she smiled faintly at him and hoped she was conveying to him clearly enough of what she wanted right now. Daryl stared at her and without a word, she felt his hand cup the back of her head.

She stretched her neck upwards and he brought his head down and their lips met. He slowly rolled them over, placing her on her back beneath him, and she opened her mouth against his, shivering again but not cold in the least, as his tongue touched hers. And then she felt his fingers slipping beneath her sweater and touching her stomach so lightly, it almost tickled and she almost laughed into his mouth.

Her fingers gripped clumps of his hair and his tongue and his fingers made her lift her hips slightly, pressing herself against him, giving him even more of a signal as to what she wanted. Daryl understood and his fingers slipped down further, popping open the button of her jeans and dragging the zipper down. She shivered again but she was feeling herself being set on fire as his fingertips dipped into her underwear.

He still moved slowly, hesitantly, pulling his lips away to look at her. He was unsure of what he was doing and it was written clear on his face but she smiled faintly up at him and with her eyes, she told him that he could never do anything to her wrong.

She gasped out with his first touch and she whispered his name.

"Still cold?" He asked, his lips to her ear.

And she would have laughed then if she wasn't moaning.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	17. Chapter 17

**Since this is Daryl's POV, we will get the Maggie and Beth conversation from Beth's POV in the next chapter. **

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Seventeen. **

After handing the few rabbits off to Carol that he had been able to catch, he went and dropped his pack off on the counter before going outside to help with the trenches. A few walkers had stumbled in and he killed them with a bolt to the head before Rick and Glenn dragged them out and carried them to the truck. He and Tyreese would then drive down to the base of the mountain to burn the bodies.

Rick asked him how the hunting trip had gone and Daryl had just nodded his head without saying much of anything. Considering what had happened between him and Beth on that hunting trip, it really wasn't anyone's business.

He and Beth had gotten back to the station to find Maggie waiting for them on the porch as if she knew they were coming back and before they could even step inside, Maggie was asking Beth if they could go somewhere and talk. Beth had nodded her head and Daryl watched as the two sisters went inside and up the stairs. He tried not to think about it. it wasn't any of his business. It was between them and all of the issues they had to sort out. He never got a conversation like that with Merle and he hoped Beth was able to tell Maggie everything on her mind and not just let the older Green bulldoze her into forgiveness.

Taking a break, he lit a cigarette and leaned against one of the rusted gas pumps.

"Think that's a good idea?" Glenn suddenly appeared, asking with a hesitant smile.

Daryl didn't say anything. He just took another drag and exhaled the smoke through his nose, looking at Glenn, watching the younger man shift on his feet a little nervously. Daryl tried to remember the last time Glenn had been nervous around him. They had all been together for so long and had been through so much together, they were a family. But right now, Glenn was acting as if they were back in Atlanta and Daryl was still the unpredictable wild redneck who would fly off at a moment's notice for anything. Maybe he still was.

Glenn put his hands in his pockets and shifted on his feet. "You guys found a real good spot here. It's quiet. And the fences and trenches… I'm sorry I wasn't here to help you with it."

Daryl still didn't say anything. He didn't really know what to say that wasn't completely bit out with anger. He was pissed at Maggie and pissed at Glenn, too. Beth was family. His sister-in-law and he had just left without a second's pause towards her. Daryl didn't get it. He knew he probably never would. Family was family and they had all been together for so long, this was what they were. They were a family who would do anything for one another and had proven that time and time again. Beth was a part of their family and the instant she needed them, they all but him abandoned her.

Daryl didn't blame her for being hurt and pissed off with most of them – especially these two. It was no fun to realize how little you mattered to some people, especially to people you had thought were the only people you had.

Glenn rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry about just taking off like that."

Daryl blew out another stream of smoke. "Why you apologizin' to me?" He finally spoke.

"I'm apologizing to everyone."

"Beth on that list?" He eyed him and saw Glenn's surprise at the question. For some reason, that just pissed Daryl off and he flicked the cigarette down to the ground.

"Of course she is. Once she and Maggie are done talking, I'm going to talk to her next," Glenn said and Daryl noticed that he was being looked at. Closely.

He wasn't sure why but now he felt uncomfortable. Why was Glenn eyeing him like that? Why did Glenn think he had a right to eye him like that. Last time Daryl checked – which was just about two seconds ago – Glenn was number two on his shit list and he had never made Daryl uncomfortable before so why was it working now?

He knew everyone else knew that something was going on between him and Beth. Sleeping together, usually always together or at least in the same vicinity, spending most of their free time together. They weren't exactly keeping it a secret from anyone that there was definitely something happening. And he supposed it would be even more obvious now that he and Beth had had sex. She had said she wanted to do it again and Daryl wasn't going to lie and say he didn't. Of course he did. Just thinking now about Beth's body and being inside of Beth, he had to shift himself a little.

Is that why Glenn was looking at him like that? Could he already tell what he and Beth had done in that tent out in the woods?

They had had sex only a couple more times in the nights they were away from everyone but Daryl was still hesitant and unsure, never quite knowing what to do with his hands or mouth and somehow, just thrusting didn't feel right either. He paid attention to her quiet moans and gasps and the way her fingers dug into her skin and with most things in his life, he tried to follow his instincts and figure out what she liked. She definitely liked when he had his fingers between her thighs. He had figured that one out pretty quickly.

A part of him was relieved she wasn't experienced either. Her first time with Zack hadn't been anything to talk about and those times in the hospital didn't happen in Beth's mind. She told him that he was her second – her true first time in her words – and the first man to make her feel as if she was exploding and Daryl was determined to keep making her explode as often as he could.

He knew the sex wasn't the best yet but like most things between him and Beth, it would take time but he didn't doubt that they would get there.

Glenn was still looking at him and Daryl felt his jaw tighten.

"What?" He finally asked. Even if Glenn had somehow figured it out, it wasn't any of his damn business. It wasn't anyone's.

"Rick told me you two got out of the prison together," Glenn said.

Daryl didn't say anything; just looked at him and waited for him to say something else.

"I'm glad she got out with you," Glenn then nodded.

And Daryl knew what he meant but at the same time, it pissed him off. He didn't get why none of them thought _he_ was lucky to get out with _her_. He just clenched his jaw though and didn't say anything. Glenn still stood there, looking awkward and uncomfortable and he darted his eyes away for a moment before bringing them back.

"Need help with the bodies?" He then asked.

Daryl shrugged. He knew he was being a dick but he _was_ a dick and everyone knew it.

Glenn gave a short nod then and turned away. But something stopped him and he looked back to Daryl. "We're not leaving you guys again," he then felt the need to say.

And Daryl wasn't entirely sure what to say to that so as usual, when faced with the lack of the right words, he just stayed silent and barely acknowledged that Glenn had said anything. Glenn walked away then and Daryl pulled another cigarette out of his pocket. He usually tried to space his smoking out since packs were hard to come by. It seemed as if the world ended and the smokers that were left took every pack left in the world before Daryl could. He had a couple stored away on his and Beth's shelf behind the counter but those would have to last for he didn't know how long. He supposed it would be easier if he just quit but the world was shitty enough without going through nicotine withdraw.

He saw Sasha patrol the fences in one direction, Michonne coming from the other, also on patrol but it was quiet. It was always quiet here. Not like at the prison where there were always pockets of walkers at the fences, growling and snarling. He didn't want to think it. That word had been taken out of his vocabulary so long ago. Maybe it had never been in there in the first place but for a moment, for just a second, the word danced across his brain like a soft breeze, barely there and already gone before it could really be felt.

Safe.

He hated the word. It had no place in this world. He had vowed to keep his family safe and looked what happened. Someone rolled through their gates with a fucking tank. He had then vowed to keep Beth safe and thinking of what happened to her made his hands curl into fists. He was no good at keeping anyone safe. But he stood there and found himself already thinking of an escape plan in case this station fell, too.

The front screen door of the station behind him screeched open on its rusty hinges and then slapped shut again and he looked over his shoulder to see that it was Carol. He knew she was coming to see him and he stayed where he was. He realized the cigarette was resting on his bottom lip, unlit, but he left it there. Just having it there made him feel better and helped him to think because the quietness of everything around them was beginning to make him go crazy. It wasn't safe and he didn't want them all to think it was.

"Hey," Carol smiled as she approached him. "I figure since you were the one who provided us with dinner tonight, you would get a choice of what you wanted for dinner."

Daryl frowned at the question. "Rabbit?"

She laughed a little. "_How_ do you want the rabbit? Roasted, stewed… raw?"

He smirked a little and then shrugged his shoulders. "Whatever everyone else wants is fine. Not feelin' too hungry anyway." Carol's hand immediately went to his forehead to feel if he was warm and he moved his head from her touch. "M'fine," he said. "Just wanna make sure there's plenty for everyone else."

Carol crossed her arms and looked at him, her face stern. "You need to eat, Daryl."

"And I will after everyone else does," he told her.

She sighed impatiently. "If you don't eat, I'm going to tell Beth on you."

He smirked again. "I ain't afraid of Beth."

"We'll see," she said and there was a slight teasing in her tone but her eyes were all serious. She turned back and began walking back towards the station. "If anyone can make you do anything, it's that girl," she told him over her shoulder and then she went back inside.

Daryl shook his head at himself and pulled the pack from his pocket, slipping the unlit cigarette back in. He looked to the front gate of the fence and saw that the last walker had been loaded into the bed of the pickup truck and Rick and Tyreese were standing there, talking with one another. He shifted the crossbow on his shoulder and went out to them.

He and Tyreese took the walkers down the road to a spot in the woods they had chosen beforehand and dumping them into a pile, they stood back a safe distance, watching them torch to nothing but ash. Tyreese had his gun and Daryl had his crossbow, both on alert for any walkers that might be nearby, attracted by the flames, but there was nothing coming for them through the trees and Tyreese smiled a little as they got back into the truck.

"Almost too good to be true," he said as they drove back to the station.

"Might be," Daryl grunted.

"You think?" Tyreese glanced at him before back to the road.

Daryl shrugged but didn't say anything else. When they got back to the station, he saw Beth standing on the front porch, Judith in her arms, and she was clearly waiting for him. He walked towards her, looking closely at her face. Her eyes were a little red and he knew immediately that she had been crying. His jaw clenched at the sight. He actually wasn't that surprised that her conversation with Maggie had led to her crying but it still pissed him off.

Beth smiled though when he got closer and she shifted Judith in her arms, the baby's head resting on her shoulder, slowly drifting off to sleep.

"Carol told on you," she teased.

He didn't smile or even smirk. He just kept looking at her and didn't say anything.

"You need to eat, Daryl. If anyone here needs to, it's you," she said quieter. "You need to keep your strength."

"Not hungry," he said. He looked past her to the door and then back to her. She was easily able to read his silent question and she shifted Judith again.

"I'll tell you. Just… later," she said and he nodded. "I'm okay though." He nodded again and still didn't say anything. "I want to take Judith for a walk in the woods. Will you come with us?"

Daryl nodded and took a step back as she came down the stairs to stand in front of him. He didn't point out to her that Lil' Asskicker was asleep. He knew this walk was for her; knew that she just needed to go back out to the woods; knew that she was like him and now saw the woods as a form of freedom and escape from the rest of the world. They went out the back gate and stepped into the woods and walked quietly for a little bit. He didn't talk but he would look at her occasionally as she held Judith tightly and securely in her arms. Despite the redness of her eyes, everything about her seemed Beth. She wasn't blank. With just him and her and Lil' Asskicker in the woods, she was actually there and breathing and he was seriously considering telling Rick that they were going to be living in their tent by the stream from now on because away from the station and everyone, she looked alive.

"Stop," she said softly. Daryl looked at her and she turned her head to look at him. "I'm alright, Daryl," she said. "Are you alright?"

He shrugged. "Have to be," he said.

…

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><p>Maggie and Glenn were sleeping with everyone else upstairs which left Daryl and Beth the only two still sleeping downstairs. Daryl had expected Maggie to make a comment about it but she had gone upstairs without a peep and he wondered if Beth had already talked to her about it. And with it being just the two of them, Daryl wasn't entirely surprised that they were taking advantage of it.<p>

He sat on their makeshift bed behind the counter and Beth straddled him, her arms around his neck, one hand fisted the hair on the back of his head as she rode him slowly, bringing herself up and down, rocking her body against his. He held her tightly to his chest, one arm around her waist and his other hand fisted in her hair. He kept his face buried in the side of her throat, losing himself to the feel of her surrounding him. So wet and tight and soft and her panting and quiet moans in his ear was making him feel so close to the end already. But he didn't want this to end. He wanted to go for as long as he could. He wanted to make sure she felt as good as he was feeling.

He pulled his head back and told himself to follow those instincts. He pressed a kiss to her collarbone and listened to the way her breath hitched and her inner muscles squeeze around him in response. He moved his lips to her shoulder, kissing her there, listening to her soft moan. Instincts, he told himself again as he moved his lips lower. Her breasts were small, easily fitting in the palm of his hands, and her nipples were hard, scraping against his chest. When he cupped one and flicked his tongue over the nipple, she cried out and slammed down on him. His hands flew to her hips, holding onto her, surprised at her reaction and only in the back of his mind did he wonder if the others upstairs had heard.

He moved his mouth to her other nipple and she clenched around him, moaning his name, and her back arched as if offering more of herself to him. Daryl gladly took it, beginning to press kisses all over her chest, following what felt right and how she moaned and moved faster with what he was doing. She then dropped her hand down between them and she blindly fumbled with his hand, pulling it with hers. She guided his fingers to where she wanted him to touch her and he paid close attention to where she was taking him.

"There," she gasped as his thumb pressed against a small bud above where their bodies met. "Right there," she clutched his shoulders and Daryl watched her face as his thumb began rubbing against it. Her eyes were closed, her lips parted in constant moans and she tossed her head back, her blonde hair tumbling down her back. She cried out again and as much as he wanted to listen to her right now, he didn't want to alert the others upstairs.

He cupped the back of her head and kissed her deeply, muffling her cries. He felt her begin to tremble and then she jerked against him, her nails digging into his skin and her body shaking. She clenched him and gushed and feeling her orgasm, he couldn't hold his own end off. He grabbed her hips again and slammed her down one more time on him and he exploded himself into the condom Beth had gotten somewhere and had handed to him. He didn't know where she had gotten it because they had just gotten back from the woods that morning but he hadn't questioned it too much as she smiled at him.

They sat there, breathing heavily, her body still trembling ever so slightly and his arms wrapped tightly around her, holding her. He didn't know what to say in the moments afterwards. He was sure other men knew just the right words but he wasn't one of those men and Beth didn't expect him to be. She pulled her head back and smiled at him. He looked at her silently. She looked beautiful. All flushed and sweaty and bright and tired all at the same time and Daryl stared at her because he didn't know what else to do. He lifted a hand and brushed hair back from her face, she closing her eyes briefly at the contact.

Slowly, she pulled herself from him and he slipped from her. She kissed him softly on the lips and all but collapsed down beside him. Daryl took the condom and tied it off, putting it aside to throw it out later, and he laid down, too. Both of them were still slightly out of breath and they laid side by side, on their backs. Feeling her eyes on him, he turned his head to look at her.

"What?" He grunted when he saw her smile.

"That was sooo good," she giggled a little and he couldn't help but smile a little to himself.

She rolled to him then and rested her head on his chest, his arm circling around her. They were quiet again, both of their breathings slowly returning to normal.

"You haven't asked about Maggie," she then said quietly.

"Knew you would talk 'bout it when you were ready," he said, his fingers finding strands of her hair, toying with it a little as his eyes stayed focused on the ceiling above them.

"I don't think we'll ever be like we once were," she said, still in a quiet voice. "But… it'll be okay. Eventually, it will be okay."

Daryl let that roll in his mind for a minute. "Okay," he then said in his gruff voice.

She turned her head up towards him. "Okay?"

"She's your sister. Not mine. I'll back you up no matter what," he said.

Beth was quiet for a moment. "Life's too short to be angry and I'm still angry at her but… I don't want to be. I warned her that you were angry with her though so don't be surprised if she tries to talk to you to make things right."

Daryl didn't say anything like that. He knew it didn't really matter what he thought and what happened to Beth happened to her and only her and if she wanted to forgive Maggie, that was entirely up to her. But he had gone through something, too, and he wasn't really ready to have any contact with Maggie at the moment. He was still pissed at her and he didn't care if life was short or not.

Beth seemed to know that and she brushed her lips across his jaw.

"Don't think there's much she can say to make it right," he said.

"That's up to you," she said. "I'll back you up no matter what."

He tightened his arm around her. "You tell her about us?"

"Mmmm-hmmm," she nodded.

"She freak out?"

"Mmmm-hmmm," she said again and he felt the curve of her smile against his chest.

Daryl wanted her to say more but when she didn't, he didn't ask. If Beth wanted to tell him, she would and he figured since she was down here with him, and not hiding anything from anyone, he knew it didn't really matter what Maggie had said or what she had told Maggie.

Beth was here with him and she wasn't going anywhere and really, that was the only thing that really mattered to him anymore.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review! <strong>


	18. Chapter 18

**Two more chapters left. Thank you so, so much for all of the support you have given me and this story. I can't thank you enough. **

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Eighteen. **

She wasn't going to say anything. She wouldn't be the one to speak first and break the silence. This was all on Maggie and Beth already decided she wouldn't make it easy for her.

When she and Daryl had emerged from the woods and returned to the station, somehow Maggie had known and was waiting on the porch. And when she asked if she could speak with Beth, Beth couldn't help but hesitate. She knew she and Maggie had a lot to talk about and yet, she didn't know if she was ready for it.

She had just gotten back from a few days in the woods with Daryl and they had been some of the best days of her life. Out in the woods, just her and Daryl, hunting and tracking and him teaching her all sorts of things just like he used to do when it really was just the two of them and then, at night, in their tent, they made love. She knew Daryl would never call it that but that's what they were doing in her mind.

She felt euphoric; as if on a high and she knew talking with Maggie would only cause her to crash back down to earth.

But it was something she knew they had to do and she had nodded her head in agreement without saying anything. She looked to Daryl standing behind her and she gave him a small smile to let him know that she was alright. He stood there, his jaw tight, and he didn't say anything as she followed Maggie into the station and up the stairs to one of the bedrooms.

And now she sat on the bed, looking at Maggie as she stood in front of the closed door, waiting for her to say something but minutes ticked by and Maggie still hadn't said a word. Beth suppressed a sigh but she wasn't going to open her mouth and say a word.

As she waited, her mind began to wander. With the rabbits she and Daryl had brought back, she would help Carol with dinner preparations. Like Beth, Carol had fallen back into her role that she had had back in the prison. She had always taken care of them with her cooking. Daryl hunted and Carol cooked what he hunted. She was an amazing cook and they were all grateful they had found a working kitchen for Carol to work her magic in. Beth had never been the best when it came to cooking. She had always loved baking so much and would often spend a weekend baking cookies and bringing them to her friends at school. But since baking was now a distant memory for everyone, cooking was something she wanted to become better at and Carol was the perfect teacher.

"I'm so glad you're safe," Maggie finally broke the silence and Beth lifted her eyes to look at her, still not saying anything. Maggie swallowed. "I… I thought I would never see you again."

"You weren't exactly looking," Beth couldn't help but bite out and after she did, in the back of her mind, she realized how much she had just sounded like Daryl.

Maggie swallowed again. "I know," she nodded. "Beth," she took a step towards her and then stopped herself suddenly. "Daryl told me you were alive but I-"

"Didn't believe him," Beth finished for her. "I know. You never expected me to be alive after the prison fell. That's why you looked for Glenn and never even spared me a thought."

"I thought about you, Beth," Maggie looked aghast that Beth would suggest that. She sighed softly. "I just tried not to. It was too painful."

Beth set her eyes on her. "You thought I was dead, I get it, Maggie. How could I have possibly survived? I'm weak and the weak don't make it."

Maggie stared at her and didn't say anything, clearly at a loss for words, but now that Beth had started talking, she found she was unable to stop more words pouring from her mouth.

"You've thought I was weak since the farm. Since I tried to kill myself. And ever since then, you never said it but you didn't have to. You never expected me to last long."

"Beth, that is not true!" Maggie cut her off.

Beth wasn't to be deterred though. "Yes, it is, Maggie. And it's okay. Everyone thought the same thing about me. I didn't do anything to help us. I just looked after Judith and sang songs and I wasn't like the rest of you. There was no way I was going to make it. But I did. I got out with Daryl and I pushed him into looking for all of you. We searched every day because I knew you were all alive and I knew you were looking for me, too."

She felt tears sting her eyes but she kept looking at Maggie as Maggie couldn't keep the eye contact and was the one to look away first, guilt clear on her face.

"When I was taken by the people at the hospital, Daryl was the only one who didn't doubt for a second that I was still alive. He never stopped looking for me. _Daryl_ never gave up on _me_." Beth paused then, her throat feeling thick and dry as she began to feel the familiar burning in her chest; the feeling of beginning to become overwhelmed.

She could feel the beginnings of another attack and she did her best to focus on her breathing for a moment. In. Out. In. Out. Slow and steady. She looked back to Maggie, who was looking at her again.

"You know what I can't stop thinking about?" She asked softly, the tenseness in her chest easing a bit now. "When you and Glenn were taken by Merle and were being held in Woodbury, Daryl and Rick were planning out what we needed to do and I volunteered. Without hesitating, I said I would go to get you back because you are my sister and you needed help."

Tears began burning her eyes and looking to Maggie, she saw tears in her eyes, too.

"You're my sister," Beth whispered, feeling a tightness in her chest again.

"Beth," Maggie took another step towards her. "I'm sorry," she finally said. "I'm so sorry."

Beth shook her head. "I'm not ready to forgive you, Maggie," she told her honestly. "And I don't know when I will. I will though. Someday. Just not today." She shook her head and looked away, wiping at her cheeks. She really hadn't wanted to cry but she should have known that would have been impossible. Maggie had hurt her so much and it didn't matter how strong she told herself she was now. Crying was inevitable at the moment.

They were quiet for a few minutes, both sisters crying softly, Beth standing on one side of the room and Maggie standing on the other.

"I'm glad you have Daryl," Maggie then said softly. "Are you two…"

"Yes," Beth said without needing to hear the question because no matter what Maggie was going to ask, the answer would be yes.

"He's older than you," Maggie said and Beth instantly turned to look at her, not believing that with everything, Maggie was choosing to say that. "I just mean," Maggie looked at her. "I don't want anyone taking advantage of you. You're so pretty and he's an older man who sees a pretty girl-"

Beth laughed then, shaking her head. "Seriously? You have no right, Maggie. Absolutely no right to stand there and say _anything_ about the one person who gives a shit about me."

Maggie was clearly surprised at Beth cursing.

"I love him," Beth said strongly, Maggie looking surprised again.

"Beth-"

"Whatever you're about to say, don't," Beth said and she felt the tears fading away, being replaced with anger. "Don't say anything against a man who ran all night, trying to catch me. Who searched without stop for weeks. Who stormed into Atlanta to get me back. He was the only one who gave a shit about getting me back. He told you I was alive and you went off on a fucking bus to D.C. with people you had just met!" She was practically yelling now and more tears flooded her eyes.

"I'm sorry, Beth," Maggie took steps to her and grasped her hands. "I'm sorry."

"Don't say anything about Daryl or me," Beth said, slowly pulling her hands from her. "At the moment, you are my sister and that's it. I said I would forgive you someday but if you say anything about Daryl, I won't."

"Okay," Maggie swallowed and nodded her head. "I'm sorry," she said again.

Beth took a deep breath and then another and another, realizing that she had just lost her composure completely after she had told herself to not to. She had wanted to be cool and collected during this conversation with Maggie and now, Maggie was going to see her as nothing more than the emotional little girl she had always been in her eyes.

She took a step around Maggie, moving closer to the door of the bedroom, ready to leave. She didn't want to be around Maggie at the moment. They had talked and Beth had said things to her that she needed to say but now, the air of the room was getting too thick and she had to get herself out of there so she could breathe again.

"Beth," Maggie saying her name softly, pleading, stopped her.

Beth looked at her, almost hesitantly. Maggie's eyes were glistening with unshed tears.

"I'm so sorry," she said one more time.

Feeling calmer now, Beth exhaled a soft breath and nodded. She didn't say anything.

"Will you let me know if you need anything?" Maggie asked.

Beth nodded and put her hand on the doorknob, ready to leave but then she stopped herself, thinking of something.

She turned back to her. "There is something…" she felt her cheeks blush but her back straightened with the confidence she needed to ask this. "Do you have a condom?"

…

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><p>She smiled faintly as Daryl turned back and saw her step out onto the porch with Judith in her arms. He was on watch, watching the stillness of the dawn. Beth made sure Judith's head was covered warmly with her hat as she came to stand beside him.<p>

"She a'ight?" He asked.

Beth nodded and smiled. "Just fussy and this baby girl was being stubborn, not wanting anyone else to hold her."

"Smart girl," he smirked and Beth felt her cheeks warm with a blush.

She slowly sat down on the top step of the porch and shifted Judith, standing the baby between her knees on the step below, holding onto her hands as Judith stood and swayed, gathering her balance. Daryl sat down beside her and smiled a little as he watched Judith and they were quiet, listening to the baby babbling to herself and clutching Beth's fingers.

Beth turned her head and looked at Daryl. Last night had been so amazing. She had shuddered and shook with an orgasm and all she had felt was Daryl surrounding her. She had never felt anything like that and they laid there afterwards, talking softly – she talking and Daryl listening – and his arm was around her and her head was on his chest and she knew that if a walker burst in at that moment and killed her, she would have died happy with that being her last moment here on earth.

"Thinkin' 'bout goin' on a run today," Daryl broke through her thoughts.

"For what?" Beth asked.

"Still lookin' for bubble wrap," he said and as if she understood it was about her, Judith turned her head and gave him a gummy smile and Daryl's own lips twitched in a smile at her. "Also need some condoms."

Beth laughed softly at that. "Definitely. I'm not ready to give Judith a playmate just yet."

The words slipped from her mouth and the instant they did, she wished she could grab them back and shove them back into her mouth. She hadn't meant to say that. She would want to go the rest of her life not saying it. She had thought it – yes – but those thoughts had been fleeting. She had always wanted to be a mom and have a child and then the world ended and she accepted that her only opportunity was probably going to be with Judith and being the baby's surrogate mother.

Then she found herself falling in love with Daryl and she began having those thoughts again but she hadn't allowed herself to dwell on it, knowing that it would never happen. She just could never imagine Daryl wanting one. He loved Judith, his Lil' Asskicker, but that was different. Judith wasn't just Rick's. She was all of theirs and it was because of Daryl that she had survived the first day of her life. He was so good with her but Beth never could imagine him wanting to have one of his own.

And now she had just said that to him and she was not even wanting to look at him right now to see his reaction. She almost hoped he would pretend that she hadn't said anything.

Daryl was quiet. They were both quiet. The sun rose slowly in the eastern part of the sky and behind them, they could hear others in the station moving around, beginning their days. A few birds were singing from the trees and there was smell in the air – clean and crisp and it let Beth know that it was going to snow that day. Judith giggled to herself over something and stomped her feet down on the wooden step.

"Ain't safe to have a baby, Beth," he finally said in his soft grunt.

Beth nodded and swallowed, looking down to Judith. "I know."

They were both quiet again and she knew they were both having their own thoughts of Lori in that moment.

"I didn't mean anything by it, Daryl," she said softly, finally daring herself to look at him.

He turned his head towards her. He looked at her for a moment. "Yeah, you did."

He kept looking at her and his eyes were so dark as they focused on her, she found that she had to look away, looking back to Judith, swallowing the dryness down in her throat.

"I'm just a stupid girl," she said softly.

"You ain't," he immediately disagreed.

She wanted to laugh at that but instead, she felt such a wave of sadness roll over her. "Just the way things are now, I know that." She smoothed some of Judith's hair. She sighed softly and looked to Daryl again. He hadn't looked away from her yet. "Just forget I said anything."

"I won't," he shook his head. "I don't forget anything you say."

Beth felt her heart flip at that and she surged forward, pressing her lips to his in a kiss that was too quick but she knew he wouldn't want to kiss where the others could see them. She pulled back and stood up then, hoisting Judith up in her arms. Daryl stood up, too, and she saw him open his mouth to say something.

"Don't," Beth shook her head. "I just need a few minutes to be a stupid girl."

She turned away from him then and walked her and Judith away, around the side of the station. Daryl didn't follow her – not that she expected him to – and she leaned against the wall, closing her eyes. She felt so stupid for being upset. There was no reason to be upset. This was how things were and she knew that. She wasn't the same girl who tried to see the good in everything. She had seen too much of the world; had been through too much to believe that anymore. She could never get pregnant or have a baby. If that was the worst thing to happen to her for the rest of her life, she would be lucky. Perspective.

She took Judith in through the back door and up the stairs, making sure she closed the gate behind her. Carol was in the kitchen and setting Judith down, Beth went to help her at the stove where she was stirring a large pot of rice for breakfast. Beth went to gather bowls and spoons for everyone and Carol and her exchanged smiles. Slowly, people began coming into the small kitchen, collecting their breakfast, thanking both of them and spreading out to eat it. Daryl came in last but when he was handed his bowl of rice, he didn't leave. Carol smiled at them both and taking her own rice, she left the kitchen, leaving them alone. He leaned against the counter beside Beth and began eating, making it no secret that he was watching her.

"On the run today, could you maybe find some honey?" She asked him. "Honey never expires and maybe we could mix it with some things, give it a little sweetness."

Daryl nodded, not saying anything as he shoved another spoonful of rice into his mouth.

"Besides those Twinkies, it's been a while since we've had anything sweet," Beth said, taking her own scoop of rice from the pot and leaning against the counter next to him.

"Not for me," Daryl grunted.

Beth looked at him in surprise and he looked at her, smirking a little. She laughed then and bumped him playfully with her arm. "I've already slept with you. You don't have to flirt with me," she teased him and he smirked again, eating another spoonful of rice.

They were quiet, eating their rice, scraping the bowls, and when they were finished, Beth took both and set them in the bin on the table to take them out to the creek for washing later. She made a move to leave the kitchen but before she could, Daryl's hand shot out and took hold of hers, stopping her. She looked at him and he looked at her.

He was quiet and then he cleared his throat. "Beth, if the world was different…" he began to say but then trailed off and she could see he didn't know what else to say.

Beth got it though and she looked at him, a warmth sparking in her chest. "Yeah?" She asked and could hear the hope in her voice.

The world wasn't different. This was how things were now and would always be and she knew that. No matter what he said, it wasn't going to change things, and yet, hearing him say such a thing to her, it helped. It meant something.

In that moment, it was exactly what she needed to hear.

She stepped to him and she felt his thumb work its way through the bracelets on her wrist, running in small circles on the deep scar there. They stared into one another's eyes and she hadn't thought it was possible but in that very moment, she found herself falling even more in love with Daryl Dixon.

He nodded then. "Not the best guy to want to have that with but…if it's what you wanted… Yeah," he said softly.

Beth stepped completely to him then and sliding her arms around his shoulders, she brought her lips closer to him. She stopped though just before they could meet.

"Thank you," she whispered.

He nodded and was the one to lower his mouth, meeting hers. She felt his hands on her hips and she pressed her lips back to his. She sank against him and kissed him, feeling her head spin and her heart drum and her stomach flip.

She had wished so many times for the world to be different; for it to be as it was. To still be living on the farm with her daddy and mom and Shawn and to be a normal nineteen-year-old going to college and experiencing life.

But this was the first time she was almost glad the world had ended because when it did, that was when she met Daryl and she never would have met him otherwise. He was the love of her life. She knew that without a doubt in her mind and it was so confusing to her because with the world being over, she got Daryl but if the world was right again, she would be able to have the opportunity to have a baby with Daryl.

She didn't know what to wish for anymore. Why wish for anything? It didn't mean anything anymore.

She pulled her lips from his then. She needed something more in that moment.

She stood more on her toes and tightened her arms around his shoulders and closing her eyes, she hugged him. Sometimes, a person just needed to be hugged. The simple act of hugging and being held. And in Daryl's arms, she felt warm and safe and she knew that he would never let anything happen to her again. She could spend the rest of her life in his arms, feeling them tightly hold her to him, squeezing her just enough to feel the muscles twitch and flex in his arms with the grip.

He grunted something and even with his lips right to her ear, she hadn't heard him clearly.

"What?" She pulled her head back so she could look into his eyes, their faces so close, their noses were nearly touching.

He mumbled something again then and she stared at him, her lips parting, falling open slightly at what he had just said. To anyone else, they probably had no idea what he had said but his eyes stared into hers and Beth knew – without a doubt – what he had just told her.

She nearly felt like her heart had stopped and she almost held her breath in case breathing would break the spell and wake her up because she clearly had fallen asleep and was dreaming.

But he was staring at her and there was no way she was mistaken or had misheard him.

She hugged him again, as tight as she could, and she placed her lips to his ear. "I love you, too."

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	19. Chapter 19

**I had planned on this story having twenty chapters but with the last chapter and this chapter, I have said everything with this story I wanted to say so I have decided to end it after this one. Thank you so much for reading and commenting and loving this story. This was my first feature-length Daryl/Beth story and I have a few more ideas for others. I hope you like this final chapter. Thank you again!**

* * *

><p>…<p>

**Chapter Nineteen.**

He moved silently, crossbow aimed and at the ready. The woods around him were quiet. He heard a faint rushing of water, a squirrel chattering above in a tree, the leaves blowing in the slight breeze. He heard it all and yet, he was able to tune it out, focusing only on the doe standing through the brush, sniffing at the ground, nudging something with her nose.

He had been tracking it all morning and his finger poised over the trigger, waiting a few more minutes as he continued watching it. His heart seemed to slow down in his chest as it always did right before he made a kill; as if his heart didn't want to make too much noise, pounding away and scaring anything off. Everything about him was quiet and still.

The deer's head lifted then, her ears flicking, and Daryl perked his own ears, listening for what had gained the deer's attention. He heard rustling. Still quite a bit away but he looked back to the deer and knew that she would take off if the rustling grew closer – and it was.

Daryl looked back to the deer, lining the bow up with her side, and he pressed the trigger, the bolt flying through the air and making contact with its target. The deer fell with a heavy thud to the ground and Daryl stepped from the bush, approaching his catch. He took the bolt and returning it to the bow, he then slung the strap over his head. He crouched down and ran a light hand over the deer's neck, feeling the animal's pulse slow and then her black eyes dulled and she was gone.

The rustling grew closer and without turning towards it, Daryl took his knife out, standing up slowly. He didn't necessarily have to turn around. He knew what it was without needing to see. The rustling grew louder and then he heard the snarls. And when the walker pushed itself through the brush, snarling louder when it saw Daryl, Daryl turned towards it and flung the blade, watching as it sailed and sank straight into the walker's head. The walker fell with a satisfying thud of its own and Daryl went to collect his knife again, wiping the blade on his thigh before returning it to its sheath.

He heaved the doe over his shoulders and pausing another moment, making sure he heard nothing else, he turned and began heading through the woods back towards the station.

Winter was nearing an end and spring was almost upon them, the days not as cold or short. They were still at the station and from the look of things, they weren't going to be leaving anytime soon. They had gone on more runs, had gathered more materials and had fortified the fence around them. The ground was softening and Rick, with the help of Carl, had begun planting the seeds in the dirt behind the station – rows of beans and tomatoes and cucumbers. And with the nights not as cold anymore, Daryl and Beth had moved out from behind the counter and had set their tent up outside at the back corner of the yard.

Judith was walking on her own now, toddling around, occasionally falling, and on one of his runs, Daryl had found a kids' plastic slide to bring back with him, now set up in the yard and her delighted laughter could be heard for hours as she played on it.

It was almost feeling like a home though Daryl never allowed himself to think that. They all patrolled the fences with unwavering dedication and never let their guard down entirely. Their side of the mountain seemed to hold true to what he had said months ago when he, Beth and Michonne had first found this gas station. Walkers couldn't climb for shit and the ones they seemed to have run-ins with were walkers of the people who had used to live on this mountain and were still wandering around.

When they went on runs, it seemed as if there were more and more walkers and runs were getting to be more dangerous. And choosing a spot in the middle of nowhere meant they had to drive further when they needed things. It had been a fight between them but finally Beth had agreed that she wouldn't go with him on the runs anymore and would stay at the station where he would know she was as safe as she could be. He hadn't said it but she had gotten it. Beth always got what he never said. He didn't want her on the runs with him for one reason. He knew he could handle herself but he would never not protect her and having her out on runs with him, he wouldn't be able to protect her as much as he liked. When she was done yelling at him about how ridiculous he was being, she looked at him and realized something about him that no one could ever say he was. He was scared.

As he came through the trees, coming upon their station, Maggie was walking along the fence and when she saw him with the deer, she hurried to get the front gate for him. She and Glenn had been back with them for a couple of months now but he still hadn't said much to them past his usual grunts and mutters. They still both tried though.

"That obviously went well," she smiled as he stepped through the gate and she closed and locked it again behind him.

He nodded and didn't say anything as he carried the deer off to the side of the station, needing to clean it and get the meat to Carol. Lil' Asskicker was on her slide, chattering to herself in her language that no one understood – though they all acted like they knew exactly what she was saying – and Beth stood nearby, hanging wet clothes on the lines they had strung up. She smiled when she saw him and he dropped the deer onto the ground.

"I'm going back to the creek in a little bit to wash another load. You need me to wash anything?" She asked.

Daryl shook his head. "After I'm done with this, I'll come and keep 'ya company."

Beth smiled at that and then watched as Judith climbed the small steps at the back of the slide and then threw herself down, laughing with endless amusement as she flew and landed face down in the dirt. Beth smiled and laughed softly and Daryl smirked to himself as he sat down, taking his knife out, and Judith ran to the back of the slide to do it again.

"Bet, Bet, Bet!" Judith exclaimed to Beth, running to her.

Beth's name was the only word she could speak at the moment though they were all working on her to get to say others, too. Carl was determined to have his name be the second name his baby sister learned. Judith then went off onto a baby babble tangent but Beth understood perfectly, smiling and bending down, hoisting her up in her arms.

When Beth carried Judith into the station – needing a fresh diaper – Daryl began to clean the deer. He had tried to do this away from the toddler and hide it from her but when she began walking, she began appearing everywhere, always slipping away from whoever was watching her at the time. Daryl was worried seeing the blood and insides of the animal would scare her but Judith was a child of this new world. Blood and guts didn't even make her blink and she watched with wide-eyed fascination as he worked.

He was already planning on teaching her how to do this when she was older.

"Hey," Rick said, coming around from the back of the station towards him, pulling off his dirty gloves from having been digging in the dirt.

"Hey," Daryl said, lifting his head to look at him but his hands never stopping their work.

"Need to go on a run," Rick said. "You, me and Michonne, I think."

"What do we need?" Daryl asked.

"I want to try and find some more gas, maybe a lantern or two. Carol asked for a couple of buckets and Beth was talking to me about getting one of those little toilets for Judith. It's about that time we start potty training her," Rick said.

Daryl nodded to all of it as he began to carefully work on the deer's stomach. "When do you wanna leave?" He asked.

"When you're done with that," Rick said, turning his head when they heard tiny feet.

"Bet!" Judith exclaimed happily and came running for him.

Rick smiled and caught her, lifting her up. "Daddy, Judith. Daddy," he said and Judith giggled, pulling on his beard.

As he carried her away, Beth came to stand next to Daryl, making sure she didn't block the sun, and he tilted his head to look up at her. She smiled at him and bending down, she brushed some hair, damp with sweat, from his forehead. He had had Carol cut it a few weeks ago, knowing Beth didn't really like it as long as it had gotten, and he admitted that his head felt a bit lighter with it shorter.

"Going on a run in a bit," he said and she nodded as if she already knew. "Need anything?"

She was quiet for a moment, thinking it through. She then shook her head. "I don't think so. Where are you headed?"

He shrugged. "Not sure. Took us a couple hours to get to anything last time."

She nodded and was quiet then. She sat down on the ground beside him, leaning her back against the wall behind them. He was quiet, too, working and cutting and cleaning, and Beth hummed a quiet song, her eyes closed and her face tilted up towards the warming sun. When he finished, he peeled off his dirty, bloody gloves and putting them aside, he came to sit beside her, his back against the wall, his legs stretched out along next to hers. Beth rested her head on his arm and he rested a hand on her thigh. They still didn't speak.

This was one of his favorite things about being with Beth. They could sit together and be quiet and not feel the need to fill the silence with chatter. Daryl was quiet. He always had been. As a kid, being quiet so he didn't set his dad off by being too loud. And as a hunter, being quiet as he tracked his dinner in the woods. Most of the time, he didn't see the need for talking. Most people who talked didn't say anything important anyway.

When Beth had first come back, she had been so quiet – not wanting to talk to anyone, wanting to curl into herself and never open herself up again. But then slowly, she began to emerge again and Beth slowly returned, piece by piece, and she was quiet, still, but now, it was because she chose to be – not because she was lost in her mind, dealing with a trauma no one was able to help her through. Now, Beth could sit with him and be quiet and it was a comfortable quiet – one they had developed and perfected in all of their time together.

He had to clean this mess up and get the meat up to Carol and then get himself ready to go but he found himself reluctant to leave this spot. It still amazed him sometimes how hard it was for him to leave Beth's side. They had been together for a while now but they still kept it to themselves for the most part. Everyone knew they were together. That was no secret. But few had seen them do anything more than this. Small shows of affection and nothing more. None of them ever saw them kiss or hug and they saved all of those things for the nights when it was just the two of them in their tent. They weren't looking to be the next Maggie and Glenn with their relationship.

Relationship. That still made him smirk a little. Sometimes, he would stop and look at Beth and wonder what the hell he was doing because sometimes, this with her didn't feel like him at all. And with the old him, it wasn't. He knew the difference now.

He had only told her he loved her once. That time in the kitchen, mumbling it for her ears and her ears only, and he wondered after that if she expected to hear it from him all of the time. It had been hard enough for him to say it that one time, having never said it before to anyone. But one time was enough for Beth and she knew. He knew she knew without him needing to tell her with words. He was pretty sure everything he did showed her. He hoped it did.

And it took him a while but he finally realized that he had been in love with her for a long time now. He always went back to that night in the funeral home and her face and his mumbling and her _oh_. He wondered if that was the night he had really fallen for her. He knew it was the first night in his life he had ever had his stomach flutter around.

Beth moved then, lifting her head. She looked at him with a soft smile. "I need to finish hanging up the laundry." He nodded and she didn't kiss him but she lifted a hand, brushing hair from his forehead again. "You'll come and see me before you go?"

He nodded and lifted a hand to her cheek, his thumb sweeping across her scar. "You know I will," he told her.

She smiled faintly and then pushed herself to her feet. He watched as she crossed the yard to the lines and reaching into the basket beside her, she resumed her work. Daryl sighed softly and putting his gloves back on, he began work again on the deer, gathering the guts and the rest of the deer's body together in a pile to burn and gathering the meat up in another pile to take inside.

By the time he was done, Beth was no longer at the laundry lines and he saw her at their tent, gathering the blankets from inside to take down to the creek to wash them.

"Headin' out," he said, approaching her, holding onto the strap of his crossbow over his shoulder with one hand.

She sighed softly and nodded, looking at him. "Be careful," she told him as she always did.

"You know me," he said, a hand sliding over her hip.

"Exactly," she laughed lightly at that. "Be careful and come back to me."

She had never said that to him before and he looked down at her as she looked up at him. He swallowed and nodded his head slightly. His hand lifted from her hip to her cheek and he stared into her eyes and at the scar and then into her eyes again.

"Don't go to the creek 'til I get back," he said.

"I have my knife," she reminded him but he just stared at her, not about to be budged on this. Their side of the mountain was quiet, yes, but he didn't worry about walkers with her as much as he did other people. People were the ones who took her from him last time.

He just kept looking at her and didn't say anything and Beth nodded slightly, agreeing.

Daryl brushed his thumb across her scar. "See 'ya in a bit," he said and she nodded again.

He didn't kiss her but his hand dropped down to her hip and gave her a squeeze there before stepping away. Beth didn't say anything and he could feel her eyes on him as he made his way to the pickup truck where Rick and Michonne were already waiting.

…

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><p>It took them a lot longer than Daryl had thought it would and by the time they drove back up the road, it was well after dark. Glenn and Tyreese were on watch and opened the gates for Rick to drive the pickup truck through. Daryl hopped out from where he had been sitting in the back bed and they all began carrying what they had gotten inside.<p>

His eyes were quick to scan for Beth but he didn't see her – not downstairs or upstairs in the apartment. He set down the box holding the potty-training toilet and then headed back downstairs, heading outside. There was a soft glow of a lantern coming from inside their tent and when he unzipped the flap, he peeked in just to make sure that it was Beth; as if he expected it to be someone else.

Beth was reading a book and she put it down when she saw it was him. "Hey," she gave him a soft smile. Daryl grunted his own greeting and crawled in, zipping the flap up behind him. "How'd the run go?" She asked.

"Alright." He set his crossbow aside and came to lie down beside her. "How were things here?" He asked.

"Quiet," she said and then smiled a little. "We all use that word so much now."

He nodded and didn't say anything and Beth lifted her book and returned to reading. Quiet. She was right. They used that to describe so many things nowadays. The night, the day. It was quiet now on the other side of their tent, on the other side of the fence. Daryl laid there and listened to her breathe softly beside him as she read and a part of him was getting used to peaceful nights like this. If he wasn't on watch, he was in this tent with Beth. They had the station where everyone else was but this tent, it was their home where it was just the two of them and didn't have to worry about anyone else. He had never had that before – a home he didn't mind coming back to; a home he actually had difficulty leaving sometimes.

He turned his head and looked at her as she read, her eyes fluttering across the words on the page. The lantern gave a soft light across her face and he knew she knew he was looking at her but she kept reading and didn't ask him about it.

She had been just a kid on the farm – young and kept ignorant to the world outside of the farm. And then she had screamed and cried that day of the barn massacre, something inside of her crumbling when she was faced with the truth in the form of her dead mom walking.

He remembered Lori coming to him, telling him that Beth had fallen into some kind of shock and could he please go find Rick and Hershel to bring them back. He had been pissed, the sight of a walker Sophia still too fresh in his mind, and he had lashed out, not caring about Beth or anyone else. And just a few days later, he heard Beth had tried to kill herself.

The farm fell to a herd and the survivors met on the highway. Beth had been clinging to Hershel, crying, she being the only one crying with what they had just all been through and survived. That winter, as they moved from place to place, trying to find somewhere longer than a couple of days, he had begun to notice her a bit more – which still wasn't that much since he had never paid attention to her before. She was young and he noticed that she was pretty and every time she sang softly, he found himself stopping whatever he was doing to listen to her words.

It had been a hard winter and he had hunted as hard as he could to keep them alive. And then, they found the prison and so many things happened so quickly, it was hard to remember them all as they all swirled into one big blur in his brain.

But he remembered Beth. Her cradling Judith and taking care of her, singing songs in the darkness and reminding Maggie time and time again that she wasn't a little kid anymore. He remembered the way she smiled and laughed and blushed and even with everything going on in the world on the other side of the prison fence, there was Beth on the inside of it, being pretty and making them all believe, along with Lil' Asskicker, that maybe things wouldn't be shit forever.

And then the prison fell and was gone to them forever and it was just him and Beth of all people. He vowed to himself as she sat across the fire from him that he would keep her safe. He would keep her alive no matter what. He may have failed the rest of their family at the prison but he wasn't going to fail her.

He had, of course. She had been taken from him and as he ran and then collapsed at the fork in the road beside the train tracks, he had felt like something else was taken from him. Something he didn't understand and couldn't identify. He had never felt it before and now, just as quickly as he had it, it was ripped from him.

And he didn't feel it again until he found Beth again and saw her and was able to always look and see her there.

Finally, not able to ignore it, she turned her head and looked at him. "What are you doing?" She wondered and gave him that soft smile of hers that punched him all over his body.

He shrugged a little. "Just tryin' to 'member things 'fore you," he said.

She set her book down. "And how was it before me?"

"Not worth 'memberin'," he shook his head.

She shifted to him then and rolling onto her stomach, she draped herself over him, her chin on his shoulder, face directed up towards his, and his thumb traced her scar.

"Still hurt?" He asked.

"Not as much as it used to. I've found myself kind of liking it," she admitted. "I look at it and it reminds me that I made it. I'm just not another dead girl."

"You were never that," he said and she laughed softly then because she didn't believe him.

"With your scars, you're a survivor, too," she told him. "You made it, too. We both made it so we could be here in this tent, just like this, with each other."

Daryl wasn't too sure what to say to that so he didn't say anything. His thumb left her cheek and his hand slowly slid back, curving around the back of her neck, touching her soft skin and seeing her eyes darken slightly from his touch.

She turned her head and kissed the inside of his arm. "I love you, too," she whispered.

He sat up, which forced her to sit up, too, and his hands framed her head, holding onto it, pulling on it gently. And she smiled before pressing her lips to his. He kissed her, immediately feeling hungry and only wanting more. He turned her and guided her down onto her back, her hands clutching him and pulling him down on top of her.

He felt her cool hands sweep up beneath his shirt and he didn't stop her or even tense as her light touch fluttered over his scars there on his back. He pressed down against her and kissed her a bit harder, opening his mouth against hers as if he was trying to crawl into her mouth and live there for the rest of his life.

She whimpered his name softly as her hands went to the button of his jeans, her teeth nipping gently at his lower lip, and Daryl shrugged out of his vest and jacket before his own fingers went to the zipper of the hooded sweatshirt she was wearing that evening. He kissed her again and again and both of their lungs were burning and they were panting but neither stopped. Her fingers gripped clumps of his hair, holding him to her, and his hands swept down the sides of her body and in that moment, being able to breathe was pretty low on the list of things he cared about.

Rick had asked him earlier on their run how things were going for him and Beth. He asked how she was and how he was and at the time, Daryl hadn't been too sure how to answer it.

But now, Beth whispered his name and her hands slid up his chest to the sides of his neck and she was making him feel as if his blood was burning and he knew exactly how he was. He had never really felt it before but in that moment, he knew exactly what it was without mistaking it for anything else.

In that moment, with Beth, having her back here with him, Daryl Dixon was happy.

…

* * *

><p><strong>The End.<br>**

**Thank you for reading and please review one more time!**


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